Sunderland boss hails Embleton’s progress amid honest admission
the same time, what we've got now is a completely different beast in Elliot.
"He's got the gravitas of having that promotion under his belt, he's got the belief. He knows now that our relationship is good and that he's going to get that opportunity.
"He has taken that right from the start.
"He's also got a lot of pressure on him because we have good players in those positions, with Alex Pritchard coming back and Aiden O'Brien who gives us that something different as well.
"His footballing ability is so good, both feet, he can go both ways.
"I've been really, really pleased with him."
Embleton has one year left on his current deal and speaking earlier last week,
Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman said he intends to open talks with a view to an extension.
"He’s come back and done extremely well in pre-season, and is someone who we think can be a huge player for us this season and in the future," Speakman said.
"We took the option up on his deal when he went out in January so he has a year left, and that’s something that we’ll have a discussion on with him and his agent.
"I’ve spoken to Elliot a few times and he’s a Sunderland boy, desperate to play for the club, and like any young player he wants minutes on the pitch, he wants to play.
"Any club at our level, you need to see the performances as well.
"So at the minute, it’s just a conversation that we’ll get started in terms of wanting to retain him.
"I think Elliot understands how much we appreciate and admire him at the club.
"He’s had a smashing period since he came back from that long injury, so he’s in a really, really good place.
"I do think he probably represents everything we want at the football club."