Sunderland manager reveals attacking lineup for derby and discusses tactical options

Sunderland’s Nazariy Rusyn will start the FA Cup clash with Newcastle United.

MICHAEL BEALE is ready to give Nazariy Rusyn a longer run in Sunderland’s starting lineup after the Ukrainian striker finally broke his goal drought against Preston on Monday.

Rusyn became the first of Sunderland’s four summer attacking signings to score for the Black Cats on New Year’s Day, converting Jack Clarke’s cross.

The 25-year-old was making his fifth appearance for the club, after being frustrated by Sunderland’s lack of a cutting edge during the opening 45 minutes of last Friday’s draw with Rotherham United.
Rusyn is set to keep his place in the starting lineup for tomorrow’s Wear-Tyne derby against Newcastle United, having made his debut as the Black Cats returned to the play-off places on Monday.
And, buoyed by his confident finish against Preston, Beale expects the Ukraine international to make life difficult for Newcastle’s defenders tomorrow lunchtime.
And, buoyed by his confident finish against Preston, Beale expects the Ukraine international to make life difficult for Newcastle’s defenders tomorrow lunchtime.

“The first half of the Rotherham game was deflating for me, to be honest,” Beale said. “I could see that we were very direct in our attack.” It wasn’t so much a problem with the players we had on the pitch as it was with the balance and blend of those players.

“We made a conscious decision at halftime in that game to change things up and go with Mason (Burstow) for the second half.” Then, after some conversations and watching and learning more about Naz, I decided it was time to give him a shot (against Preston).

“He’d hit the bar in one of the games before I arrived and had been unlucky.” His work ethic is infectious, and that was my main focus when he joined the team on New Year’s Day. We knew we’d be leggy going in, but we also knew he’d be an infectious player who worked hard.

“It was critical that he focused on that first, giving the team a real work ethic with his pressing, and I believe the goals will follow.” That is what has happened to him, and may it continue. I believe the challenge for him this weekend is much greater, but he approaches it in the best possible spirit.”

As the pressure mounted on Sunderland’s strikers, there was a collective outpouring of emotion when Rusyn finally found the back of the net.

His teammates dashed over to join him in celebration, and the Stadium of Light crowd erupted in approval as the goal helped secure a crucial three points.

“It was a lovely personal moment for him, but it was a real weight off the backs of the fans and the rest of the squad too,” Beale said. “It was important that we had a striker score a goal.”The focus has been on Jack’s run, which was fantastic, but Naz’s movement was also excellent. That’s something the team has lacked thus far this season.

“I’m sure he’ll be fired up for the game this weekend.” You can see how hard he works on his game, and the fans have already taken notice. If he continues to score, I believe he will quickly become a fan favourite.”

For the time being, Rusyn has surpassed Burstow, Eliezer Mayenda, and Luis Hemir in Sunderland’s attacking pecking order.

His physical presence changes the way Sunderland play, allowing the Black Cats’ wide players to play balls into the box instead of constantly looking to cut in to get a shot away due to a lack of targets in the penalty area.

With Rusyn leading the line and tying up at least one centre-half, there is more space for Alex Pritchard and Jobe Bellingham to exploit, with the former catching Beale’s eye on several occasions during Monday’s victory.

The loss of Patrick Roberts to a calf injury at Rotherham was a setback, but it has been mitigated in part by the return of a fully-fit Pritchard to the starting lineup.
“Patrick has an issue with his calf at the moment, and while we think we’ve caught it at the right time, we certainly won’t rush him,” said the head coach of the Black Cats. “We know that towards the end of the season, the fixtures start piling up again.”

“In a way, it was nice because we hadn’t had Pritchard available for a couple of games.” As we lost Paddy, Pritch became available, which worked out in our favour. Pritchard was fantastic at the weekend, in my opinion.”

in other news,   Newcastle United is one of the Premier League clubs interested in Sunderland’s star.