Opinion: Sunderland player’s injury boost could be career-defining for him | OneFootball

It previously looked as though Sunderland midfielder Elliot Embleton would be spending the remainder of the campaign on the sidelines when it was reported by Alan Nixon that he had fractured his fibular.

He sustained this injury following a nasty clash with Hull City’s Ryan Woods last weekend, with the Black Cats’ star being sent off despite coming off worse in the challenge.

There were real concerns about the severity of his injury after being stretchered off at the MKM Stadium and last weekend’s report from Nixon only went on to create more concern for Embleton who looked set to have his season cut short.

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However, yesterday’s report from Football Insider revealed that he’s set to have an operation and could potentially be back in action in nine to 12 weeks, with the 23-year-old seemingly set to be able to make a real impact during the latter stages of this term.

This will come as a major relief to the 23-year-old who will want to remain a key player for the Wearside outfit, something that may be harder for him to do under Tony Mowbray than previous boss Alex Neil considering he hasn’t had too much time to impress the former.

With the ex-Blackburn Rovers boss only being appointed at the Stadium of Light during the latter stages of August, you feel the 59-year-old is yet to see the best of Embleton at this point.

But with the attacker midfielder potentially having more time to impress Mowbray than expected later on this term, that could be a crucial period for him in his potential quest to be one of the first names on the teamsheet next season.

At 23, he’s at a delicate stage of his career where he’s still developing but should be looking to start most weeks, but he may need more time to force his way past Alex Pritchard in the pecking order.

And if Pritchard picks up an injury during the latter stages of the season, it now seems as though there’s a better chance Embleton will be available.

With the likes of Ellis Simms, Amad Diallo and Ross Stewart around him, he should be able to thrive if given the opportunity to get plenty of minutes under his belt on his return to action.

Not only could that boost his chances of winning an increased amount of game time next season – but it could also force other clubs to sit up and take notice of his progress – so his quick return would be a big boost for his career.