Sunderland must rue letting a “dangerous” Mundle upgrade leave

Sunderland are now glancing nervously at the Championship relegation zone, the Black Cats unbelievably finding themselves just nine points off the dreaded bottom three after suffering six defeats on the spin in the second tier.

At one point, the main goal for the Wearside outfit was attempting to achieve promotion to the Premier League. Now, the more immediate aim could well just be to bring stability back into the building and stop the rot before they sink any further down the league standings.

New bodies in through the door in January haven’t exactly exploded into life to help raise spirits for Mike Dodds’ men, with Romaine Mundle scoring his first goal for Sunderland against Southampton last time out generating somewhat of a smile from the Black Cats fanbase amidst a quiet start otherwise from the ex-Tottenham Hotspur youth player.

Sunderland would love to turn back the clock and have one former loanee back on their books to make the mood more positive, with the one-time Black Cats attacker in question starring down the right wing – where Mundle has lined up for his new team – in the Premier League now.

Antoine Semenyo’s time at Sunderland

Antoine Semenyo’s brief loan spell at Sunderland has been somewhat forgotten about, considering how little impact the current AFC Bournemouth attacker made on those at the Stadium of Light back in 2020 and also what he has since gone on to achieve after the short-term move.

Still, the now 24-year-old winger – despite only managing to play 184 minutes for the Wearside outfit at the time – was well thought of by then Sunderland manager Phil Parkinson during his short spell.

Parkinson would praise Semenyo for being a “dangerous” presence for his then League One Black Cats team from off the bench, but the young loanee would never really be able to displace the likes of Charlie Wyke and Chris Maguire who were experienced and reliable heads up top.

The Ghana international would never really kick into gear for the Wearside giants, making just seven appearances before returning to Bristol City goalless.

Yet, regardless of this underwhelming loan stint so early into his career, Semenyo would go from strength to strength after this back at his parent club.

Not even the most optimistic Sunderland fan would have predicted that Semenyo would go on to have a career in the Premier League after failing to break into the Black Cats’ first team, but the Wearside oufit must now watch on knowing the peaks Semenyo has managed to get to wondering if they could have utilised the Cherries star more effectively at the Stadium of Light.

Antoine Semenyo’s statistics since leaving Sunderland

Semenyo would eventually turn into a creative, goalscoring menace back at Ashton Gate, Bristol City rewarded for continuing to persist with their one-time Academy prospect until he would repay their unwavering faith with exceptional displays back.

Semenyo’s breakthrough 2021/22 campaign would see him score eight goals and pick up 12 assists from 31 appearances, becoming a key performer for the Robins that season in the process after previously fading in and out of contests.

He would even be called up to the Ghana squad off the back of this standout campaign, with interest from higher-up suitors following closely behind.

It was going to take a hefty bid for Bristol City to part ways with their star man, and when top-flight side Bournemouth offered up £9m to try and persuade the Robins to offload their breakout winger, it was an offer the second-tier club couldn’t refuse.

Still, although Bristol City managed to bank a respectable £9m, Semenyo doesn’t quite break into their top five record departures looking at the table above.

His exit will sting more now when you look at how swimmingly he’s taken to top-flight life, however, with the Cherries winger onto five goals now this campaign in such a demanding and tricky division.

Sunderland will aim not to be so hasty in writing off Mundle like they were with Semenyo on loan, with the Bournemouth number 24 standing out once more recently playing the role of goalscoring hero in a 2-0 away win at Burnley for Andoni Iraola’s men.

Mundle will hope he can settle into his new surroundings better after breaking his duck against Russell Martin’s Saints, with the Black Cats in desperate need of a dependable figure in attack like Semenyo now to end their disastrous run of losses.

Romaine Mundle’s struggles at Sunderland

Mundle did shine in spurts at St. Mary’s away from his deflected strike catching Gavin Bazunu off-guard, the ex-Standard Liege man winning four duels in total to try and stop a Southampton comeback.

Yet, Sunderland need a prolific figure in attack – especially with Jack Clarke in the Stadium of Light treatment room – and so Mundle will have to show this hunger and desire to score goals on a consistent basis away from this one-off contest versus the Saints to further impress.

The 20-year-old has struggled to get consistent first-team minutes away from this game which hasn’t helped him fully acclimatise, averaging just 46 minutes per match so far in a Sunderland strip.

The stuttering Wearside outfit will need to be patient and hope Mundle can blossom into a hero for the club over time alongside their other inexperienced squad members.

They will be anxious about history repeating itself considering that Semenyo was once disregarded as an underwhelming winger whilst on loan, and has since gone on to become a devastatingly effective attacker for Bournemouth in the top flight.