Reunited middle men are central to Black Cats’ promotion dreams
AFTER almost a decade on Wearside, Lee Cattermole has become part of the furniture.
While Sunderland have had older midfielders than Cattermole in recent times
- Darron Gibson, Seb Larsson and Jordi Gomez to name but three - he has long been regarded as the experienced head in the middle of the park.
So it is hard to reconcile his status as the Black Cats’ longestserving player with that of junior partner in midfield alongside Grant Leadbitter.
Because while Sunderland fans have seen Cattermole evolve from the 20-year-old hot-head who arrived from Wigan Athletic in 2009, Leadbitter’s departure a few weeks later meant for many he was frozen in time as the 23-year-old academy graduate who made his debut under Mick McCarthy before making his name under Roy Keane. Now, after spells at Ipswich Town and Middlesbrough, Leadbitter’s January return to his boyhood club has seen his career come full circle. He and Cattermole have been reunited and have also become teammates instead of mere ships who passed in the night in the summer of 2009.
When Leadbitter’s return was mooted towards the end of the January window, it came at a time when many myself included felt all efforts should have been concentrated on finding a replacement for top scorer Josh Maja, who had just left the club. Reinforcing central midfield, an area of the squad in which Sunderland were already strong, seemed a luxury. Thankfully, Sunderland eventually landed Will Grigg and Kaz Sterling late on deadline day, which at least meant they had filled the goalscoring void left by Maja’s departure. With strikers on board, the move for Leadbitter made sense.
Even so, like many, I thought Leadbitter and Cattermole might be too similar to operate as a pairing.
Yet the last two games have demonstrated that fear was unfounded.
Jack Ross started Leadbitter and Cattermole against Gillingham at the Stadiium of Light and the pair ran the show as Sunderland ran out 4-2 winners - Cattermole scoring from a Leadbitter corner - to end a frustrating run of three successive draws.
They were again impressive in the 2-0 weekend win at Bristol Rovers as Sunderland completed backto-back league wins for the first time since mid-December. Cattermole was already having a good season but now appears to have raised his game to another level operating by alongside a more experienced partner.
It is not just experience Leadbitter brings, either. His quality on the ball and range of passing has improved this team no end. Not only that, his set-piece delivery has transformed what had been one of Sunderland’s greatest weaknesses into a major strength.
The Wearsiders’ ineffectual corner kicks have been a long-term problem which far predates this season - but Leadbitter’s unerring aim has given the Black Cats a new weapon in their armoury.
In the last five games, precisely half of Sunderland’s 10 goals have come from corners - all of them taken by Leadbitter.
As the season enters its final phase, it is the Cattermole-Leadbitter midfield axis on which Sunderland’s automatic promotion ambitions rest.
As the season enters its final phase, it is the Cattermole-Leadbitter midfield axis on which Cat’s automatic promotion ambitions rest