Sunderland fans will be dreaming about a Premier League return already, despite the new Championship season still being in its infancy, with Regis Le Bris’ Black Cats currently taking the second tier by storm.
Le Bris has been the breath of fresh air Sunderland needed in the dug-out clearly, after the disastrous chop-and-change approach with managers last season, with the ex-Lorient boss steering the Wearside outfit to a mightily impressive nine wins from 12 in league action.
If Sunderland were to finally break out of the second tier come the end of this long and drawn-out campaign, this would be the first time the Black Cats would be in the big time since the 2016/17 season, when they finished rock bottom of the pile.
Le Bris will be hopeful that his team can keep up this stellar form across the full run of fixtures, knowing that the Black Cats would have to sell some of their top assets if promotion wasn’t achieved, with top clubs no doubt sniffing around.
Sunderland were in a similar boat when parting ways with Jordan Henderson back in 2011, as the homegrown talent longed for bigger and better things at Liverpool, away from staying put at his hometown employers.
Henderson's time at Sunderland
Henderson’s beginnings at the Stadium of Light are often forgotten about when you look back on his extensive career in England, with the one-time Sunderland youth prodigy going on to be a top performer for the Reds over many years.
Before he was thrust into the spotlight at Anfield, however, Henderson had to cut his teeth on Wearside to win himself a major move away, and he did just that when exploding into life in the men’s team after rising up the youth ranks.
Henderson would go on to accumulate 79 first team appearances for the Black Cats before spreading his wings to move onto Liverpool, picking up a promising five goals and 11 assists along the way.
The Reds must have known there was plenty more to come from the raw midfielder when chasing after his services, boldly picking up the young ace for £16m in 2011, after he had only completed two full Premier League seasons playing for Sunderland.
Of course, it’s well known now that this was a wise investment decision by Liverpool to gamble on Henderson to come good, as the former Reds captain enjoyed many great seasons at Anfield over his decade or so at the club.
He would amass a ridiculous 492 appearances for the Premier League giants in total, scoring 33 goals and picking up 59 assists, with his trophy collection going on to boast a top-flight title alongside a Champions League success.
The decorated midfielder could well even be up for a full circle moment soon, with recent transfer rumours linking him with a switch back to Sunderland to see out his esteemed playing days.
But, although Henderson is still held in high regard at the Stadium of Light and more so at Anfield, there is a star in Le Bris’ current camp that could be sold on for more than the £16m they managed to recoup for their homegrown talent 13 years ago, with the player in question also a promising midfield gem much like the 34-year-old once was.
Sunderland's next big star
Chris Rigg will likely make Sunderland a lot more profit than the £16m they managed to get out of Liverpool for Henderson, if everything goes according to plan for the next hotly-tipped youngster at the Wearside club.
It’s clear from his performances for the second-tier side this campaign alone that he has an exceptionally bright future in the game, with the teenager not fazed whatsoever by the demanding pressures of the Championship, and instead thriving off all the attention he’s receiving.
Stat – per 90 mins*
Rigg
Games played
12
Games started
11
Goals scored
3
Assists
1
Shots*
1.4
Touches*
35.3
Accurate passes*
19.3 (83%)
Total duels won*
3.6
Always eager to make something happen for his promotion-chasing side, the energetic Sunderland number 11 has three goals and one assist next to his name from 12 league appearances to date, as Le Bris continues to pick the wide-eyed teen week in week out.
Henderson had to wait until he was 18 years of age before he made a lasting impression on the senior mix, whilst Rigg managed to score his first-ever league goal for the Black Cats when he was just the tender age of 16, before going on to cement a spot in the first team this campaign under his new French manager.
There will be a worry in the air already that it will be an inevitable losing battle for the Championship side to keep a firm grip on their starlet for the foreseeable, with Sunderland already aware that their top academy products can be snatched away from them in an instant when Henderson left.
Of course, the blow of losing Rigg could be softened somewhat by how much they’d likely win for him if he was to move on, with it being reported that he could be sold on for nearly double what Henderson exited for.
The potential fee Sunderland could get for Rigg
As per a fresh report by CaughtOffside, Sunderland will be demanding a fee in the region of £25m-£30m to even think about letting their tenacious midfielder leave anytime soon, amidst alleged interest from the likes of top-flight titans Chelsea and Manchester United.
If Sunderland were to get this hefty amount out of any potential suitor, Rigg could go down as the club’s highest-ever sale, and the best talent to ever come out of the academy arguably, even eclipsing the 34-year-old in the process.
Player
Amount sold for
1. Jordan Pickford
£30m
2. Darren Bent
£24m
3. Jordan Henderson
£16m
4. Jack Clarke
£15m
5. Simon Mignolet
£9m
It all depends on whether or not an onlooker deems Rigg worthy of surpassing Pickford’s £30m fee, with the 17-year-old potentially sold on for two times more than what Sunderland managed to get for Jack Clarke, who left just this summer for pastures new at Ipswich Town.
It’s not just Rigg in isolation who could win the Black Cats a pretty penny down the line, with high hopes above Jobe Bellingham’s head that he will also develop into a top-drawer talent worthy of winning his side some big bucks, as the ex-Birmingham City youngster is still only 19 years of age himself.
But, Rigg looks to be the next off the conveyer belt to become a stellar talent in the Premier League having blossomed into a sublime performer on Wearside, with the potential there for him to even rise up to the top-flight with his boyhood employers, to be another household name like Henderson.
Dan Neil makes Jordan Henderson claim ahead of possible Sunderland reunion
He has had “contact” with the former Black Cats hero.
ByHenry Jackson