Since mid-December Sunderland AFC have lost just two games. The losses came against Coventry City and Portsmouth, both of whom are currently fighting for promotion from League One to the Championship alongside Phil Parkinson’s men.
The side’s incredible run of form has seen them shoot up the league table into fifth place, just four points off automatic promotion.
However, while the side currently looks capable of challenging for promotion, there are a few fans who are still discontent with the way the club is being managed. One fan questioned why players such as Declan John, Kyle Lafferty, Antoine Semenyo and Josh Scowen either haven’t played or have barely seen any minutes. All four players were brought to the Stadium of Light this January.
Some fans agree that these players deserve to see more game time.
Totally agree Tom?
— alistair newton (@alistairnewton7) March 2, 2020
Yep 100% right it needs freshening up now.
— David Reay (@RickyReay) March 2, 2020
Give them a game on Saturday from the start I say
— Header Safc (@HeaderSafc) March 2, 2020
However, there are a vast majority of fans who believe there was never any intention of giving these players a plethora of minutes. They see the players as merely fresh bodies to be called upon when needed. They don’t think Parkinson should make too many changes, especially considering how well the side are doing.
I think these players were purely signed as cover/bodies tbh as they were the best we could get with our tiny budget
— Michael (@mgsmith95) March 2, 2020
The reason we’ve been playing so well lately is because Parkinson has stuck with the same players and same system. He’s given them routines and confidence they’ll play every week. If he starts swapping around, they’ll all lose confidence again.
— Lewis Chapaldi (@WERGHJIGgJ) March 2, 2020
We have won virtually every game until this weekend? Parkinson rewards one of the most inform sides in the country by dropping them all?
— Bilton (@Alex_Bilt1) March 3, 2020
Do you think Parkinson should rotate his squad?
Yes
No
What do we think?
It is always tricky to find the balance between keeping your inform players in the starting lineup and rotating your squad. While Parkinson may want to keep his eleven best players on whenever possible, there is always a risk that they could end up burning out before a vital end of year playoff run.
Should he get his rotations spot on, however, there is a chance that they won’t even need to face playoffs at all by achieving automatic promotion.
If he gets them wrong, on the other hand, they may miss out on playoffs, but for all the wrong reasons.