Sunderland AFC: Lee Johnson’s Ross Stewart forecast for 2021 proved correct – View.

Sunderland signed Ross Stewart from Ross County in January 2021, after witnessing him perform well in the Scottish football pyramid.

Scoring 28 goals in 82 appearances for the Scottish side, he had also done well at Albion Rovers, Alloa Athletic, and St Mirren, which undoubtedly alerted the Black Cats to his goalscoring abilities.

However, given the player had yet to make his first appearance in English football, it was uncertain how he would fare at the Stadium of Light.

Lee Johnson, the Wearside club’s manager at the time, projected that he would have a positive influence in the near term despite the fact that he needed to adjust to life south of the border.

According to the BBC, Ross is a player with potential for short-term success as well as long-term growth.

“He’s at a good age, he’s very fit and quick, and he obviously has good height as well, so he has all attributes to succeed.”

He only had a few chances to shine during the second half of the 2020/21 season, but he managed to score three goals in 12 competitive games, proving Johnson’s prediction that he would be outstanding in the near term.

Ross Stewart’s Impact at Sunderland

With one goal every four games in the second half of 2020/21, he had a solid foundation to build on for the 2021/22 season.

Despite their grandeur, the Black Cats had been in League One for three years by the summer of 2021, and someone needed to step up to propel the team back into the Championship after a rather long hiatus.

Stewart was able to do this, scoring 26 goals and assisting five times in 53 competitive appearances for the team during the 2021/22 season, with some of these goals being significant.

In the first leg of the play-off semi-final, he took advantage of a mistake made by Sheffield Wednesday’s Sam Hutchinson, resulting in the decisive goal.

In addition to his exceptional quickness and calmness, he scored the Black Cats’ second goal in a 2-0 play-off final triumph over Wycombe Wanderers later that month, thus securing the victory.

The Scotsman proved to be a game changer that season, and he was able to carry that form into the second division after their promotion, making an impressive start to the season under then-manager Alex Neil.

Stewart scored 11 goals in 15 competitive appearances during the 2022/23 season, and he may have had a bigger impact if not for a number of injuries.

The Black Cats allegedly earned £8 million upfront for the player, with a further £4 million in add-ons. The agreement appears to have benefited the Wearside team.

Unfortunately for Stewart, he has missed the most of his time at St Mary’s due to a hamstring injury, making only four appearances in all competitions last season, all of which came off the bench.

Promotion may not have done much to boost his mood, given that he spent much of last term on the sidelines.

The 2024/25 season presented an opportunity for him to establish himself at the highest level. However, he suffered another injury in his fourth Premier League outing against Arsenal this month.

Stewart’s situation on the south coast is simply not working out at the moment, which is unfortunate given his performance at the Stadium of Light.