Sunderland fans made arguably their signing of the summer when Chris Rigg signed a new contract last week.
The midfielder’s future was in doubt as the likes of Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund circled.
Rigg wanted to wait until Sunderland had appointed a new head coach before making his decision, and it took only days of meeting Regis Le Bris before putting pen to paper on a professional contract.
It’s been a whirlwind summer for the Black Cats, with fans enjoying the distraction of England reaching the Euro final last night.
However, they will still have on eye on Sunderland’s upcoming campaign and will be eager to see what Rigg can do in his first year as a professional player.
The teenager was mostly deployed out wide last term, with Mike Dodds previously claiming that putting him in a central position would be a ‘lack of care for him and his development’.
Le Bris doesn’t intend on playing Rigg out wide anymore
Le Bris has now admitted that he sees him as more of a midfielder though. Speaking in his first press conference (as perSunderland Echo), the Frenchman said: “I’ve had four or five sessions, so it’s still quick to understand who he is.
“He played as a right winger when he first played with the first team. I think he’s more of a No.8, maybe a No.10 and maybe a No.6 also. During the training sessions he is very interesting. He has a good level of energy, he’s very aware of the details, which is important, and I think he could be a very interesting player for us.”
Would the midfielder be wasted as a No.6?
Rigg was very effective in dictating the play, spraying balls out wide and moving the ball forward last season.
The midfielder is hugely talented and would undoubtedly do a job wherever he was put, but fans will now be eager to see him playing in that No.8 role.
With the club hopefully bringing in a new striker, it seems likely that Jobe Bellingham will take up that more attacking position in the middle of the park.
The Black Cats are yet to recruit a defensive midfielder, but they surely won’t want to waste Rigg further back, with the likes of Pierre Ekwah and Dan Neil limited to their impact when they were forced to play there too.
It will be a tough decision when it comes to team selection for Le Bris, but he should really consider forming his team around Rigg rather than fitting him in where he can.