Captain Dan is the right man for Sunderland

As Wilson Isidor cheekily dinked the ball over Ivor Pandor to put Sunderland ahead against Hull on Sunday afternoon, all the focus was on the part referee Bobby Madley had played in frustrating Hull’s short corner routine.

As the replays were debated, and the impact of Madley’s positioning scrutinised, the role Dan Neil played was almost totally overshadowed. It was Neil who pounced, as Marvin Mehlem hesitated, disconcerted by the presence of the referee, and dwelt too long on the ball. He could have played a simple ball to his right – instead he tried to turn back inside, allowing Neil to rob him of possession.

What happened next changed the game. Having won the ball, Neil instinctively stabbed it forward into space for Isidor to race on to. The on loan French striker outpaced Cody Drameh for half the length of the pitch, before delivering a composed finish.

There has been much debate surrounding Neil’s presence in the team since he was handed the captaincy of his boyhood club. The question as to whether the role was impacting on his performances has been repeatedly raised, no more so than when his error of judgement against Watford led to their last gasp winner.

There is no doubt that Neil has been less eye catchingly influential this season, which has raised concerns that the captaincy is weighing too heavily on him.

There are several reasons why I believe that not to be the case.

The first is the level of responsibility that Dan Neil assumed from the moment that Cory Evans sustained the injury that effectively ended his Sunderland career. While many bemoaned the lack of cover for Sunderland’s experienced skipper, Neil quietly set about establishing himself in his new role.

Watching him closely, one thing that quickly became evident was the level of communication with his teammates. Neil isn’t the Roy Keanesque finger-pointing, gesticulating, angry midfield presence that some fans would like to see. But he is talking constantly to those around him, and that was obvious to those who watched carefully, even before Evans’ injury.

And the coaches trust him to convey their messages to his fellow players. From Tony Mowbray onwards, Dan Neil has been, and remains, the conduit between the coaching staff and those on the field of play. Whether the situation requires a change in formation, an adjustment to tactics or some other in game tweak, it is invariably Neil going to the touchline to receive instructions. He is trusted to impart the details of whatever change is required to the rest of the team. It is something I have written about before, an element which can be easily overlooked but one which underlines his importance as a communicator within this young team.

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The second reason I believe that the captaincy is not a burden to him revolves around Régis Le Bris, and the very clear roles that he has established for each member of this exciting young team.

Towards the end of his tenure, Tony Mowbray was having difficulty in drawing together all the talent available to him, and forming those players into a cohesive unit, capable of delivering on their undoubted potential. He was undoubtedly hampered by the lack of an effective striker, together with the fact that opposition teams had begun to nullify the counter attacking style which had made his young team so exciting to watch in the preceding season. But, whatever the reasons, the team lost the spark that Mowbray had previously ignited in them.

It was a problem that neither the ill-fated Michael Beale, nor the unfortunate Mike Dodds were able to solve.

Régis Le Bris has wasted little time in assessing the squad of players available to him. Some have departed, others have been challenged to prove they can earn their place in the squad, and promising Academy youngsters have been rewarded with a taste of 1st team football. For those he has chosen to include, it is apparent that anyone who now pulls on a matchday shirt does so with clearly defined expectations of what their role in the team is. Tactics may be adjusted, depending on who our opponents are – Hull were again subject to the high press that characterised our opening fixtures – but each player knows exactly what Le Bris requires them to do.

And it is for that reason that I believe the suggestion that the captaincy is weighing too heavily on Dan Neil’s shoulders is some way wide of the mark.

Photo by Ian Horrocks/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images

Neil does appear to have a more subdued role in midfield than he has previously shown but that is not because of the skipper’s armband. It is because it is the role that Le Bris wants and expects him to play. With the continued absence of Salis Abdul Samed, and the injuries to other central defenders that have removed the potential option of playing Luke O’Nien in that position, Le Bris has clearly decided that Dan Neil is the best player to protect the defence.

Just as importantly, Neil’s discipline in fulfilling that role allows his younger teammates in the midfield area, Jobe and Chris Rigg, to flourish. The relationships that are developing down the flanks – Cirkin, Jobe and Mundle to the left, Hume, Rigg and Roberts to the right – are proving a test for any opponent.

At the heart of it, Dan Neil provides the secure platform that underpins the flair and creativity that Sunderland’s more advanced players are able to showcase.

It is not his natural game, his opportunities to display the creativity that he so clearly possesses are severely curtailed and he is less obviously influential, as a consequence. But it is not the captaincy that is constraining him, it the role that his Coach has given him.

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That would explain why Le Bris has persisted with him, despite the clamour for him to be taken out of the side. Le Bris knows exactly what he wants from Dan Neil, and Neil knows exactly what is expected from him by Le Bris.

It may not be the Dan Neil that we have seen in previous seasons but the role he is playing now is crucial to the success that this team are enjoying.

And occasionally, he will deliver moments of brilliance, just as he did on Sunday – stripping an opponent of possession, and instinctively toe-poking the ball into the area that was most damaging to Hull. It demonstrated his skill and awareness just as much as the raking crossfield pass he delivered to Jack Clarke two seasons ago, for that glorious goal against Reading.

His discipline in curbing his more attacking instincts to perform a role which is crucial, both to the team and the tactics that his manager wants to play, is exactly the sort of professionalism that a Sunderland skipper should display. Whatever the view from the stands, Dan Neil is setting the example by delivering exactly what Le Bris expects from him.