NafisaSunderland winger Tommy Watson made his return to action last weekend, coming off the bench in the team’s 2-1 victory over Cardiff City.
The Black Cats secured the win at the Stadium of Light, with goals from Eliezer Mayenda and Chris Mepham helping Régis Le Bris’ side claim three points. Watson’s return provides an additional boost for Sunderland, who have also recently welcomed back Romaine Mundle following his recovery from a hamstring injury.
Watson, a transfer target for Brighton in January, replaced Mundle in the second half against Cardiff and looked sharp in his brief cameo. After the match, the 18-year-old, a lifelong Sunderland fan, took to social media to celebrate his return.
On Instagram, Watson posted: “Great to be back, +3 points to make it even better.” His comeback was met with support in the comments, with former Sunderland striker Danny Graham writing, “Class mate … great to see u back out there.” Mundle welcomed him back with a message, while Trai Hume responded with a muscle emoji.
During Watson’s time on the sidelines, Brighton & Hove Albion made multiple attempts to sign him in the January transfer window, but no agreement was reached before the deadline. Ahead of the Cardiff City match, Le Bris spoke about Watson’s mindset and was impressed with his maturity despite the transfer speculation.
“We spoke about everything that happened,” Le Bris said. “I think Tommy is clear in his mind. He seems really mature because he had many interests in him, that is true, but at the same time, he was still connected with everything he was doing on a day-by-day basis. If you are a footballer, you can be in a high or a low point, but at the same time, it is always important that you stay connected with your job. Tommy has always done that. He has shown this good quality during the different weeks we have had together.”
Although Watson is expected to play a key role in Sunderland’s push for promotion, Le Bris plans to reintroduce him gradually following his extended spell out. Mundle is likely to remain the starting left winger for now, with Watson being used as an impact substitute as he regains match fitness. The two players are expected to rotate more as the season progresses.
“It is true that Tommy is still very young,” Le Bris said. “I hope we will have the luxury of Romaine being able to start at the beginning, and then Tommy available for the last few minutes. Maybe ten or 15 minutes to start with, and then after that, we can build it up to 20 or 25. If we have both players available, then we can build things up like that, and that would be a good idea for us.”
What Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman Previously Said About Brighton’s Interest in Watson
Following the closure of the January transfer window, Sunderland’s sporting director Kristjaan Speakman addressed Brighton’s pursuit of Watson, emphasizing that the young winger remained fully focused on the club.
“Tommy is like a number of young players that we’ve got, where they’re on the up, they’re highly-rated and ambitious, which we want them to be, and then they get presented with an opportunity,” Speakman said in February.
“Ultimately, Tommy didn’t have a decision to make because there wasn’t an agreement between the clubs. If the clubs had agreed, he would have had a decision to make, and you could understand why he would choose to stay, but you could also understand why he might decide to leave. That would be based on his views. But we never got to that point, so it was never really an issue.
“I think Tommy is such a level-headed kid that it’s absolutely not a problem. He’s Sunderland through and through, but he’s also ambitious and wants to get promoted and play in the Premier League with Sunderland. I’ve spoken to him this morning and he’s the usual Tommy Watson – he wants to get back fit and wants to get back to the Stadium of Light, scoring goals.”
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