Poyet expects Rodwell to progress

Sunderland manager Gus Poyet has revealed that he expects midfielder Jack Rodwell to get even better in the coming weeks once he gets his full fitness back. The former Everton midfielder was signed by the north-east club for £ 10 million from Manchester City in the transfer window. Rodwell was once spoken of as the next big thing in the England international team, but the 24-year-old has suffered from a string of injuries in the last few years. Keen to revive his career, Rodwell moved to Sunderland in the expectation of regular first-team football.
The midfielder scored his first goal for his new club in the 1-1 draw with Manchester United a few weeks ago. Poyet remarked that there was more to expect from the midfielder, who is relishing the regular first-team opportunities. He has already featured in all the four league matches, which is just one short of the five league appearances that he made throughout the campaign at Manchester City last season. Poyet says that Rodwell has been pushing himself during training and in matches over the last few weeks. The club could benefit hugely from this in the coming matches according to the manager, who faced issues with fitness during his playing career at Chelsea.
“Jack is showing more confidence, running and understanding things. We just need to keep pushing him to the limit. I know it’s a little bit unfair on Jordi (Gomez), I’m not stupid. But for them to have competition, Jack needs to play. How long will that continue? That depends on Jack. I always say, the most difficult thing here is for the midfielders because of the pace of the game. You get caught in the middle, in two-minds of what to do,” said the Sunderland manager, who performed a miracle last season by keeping the club in the league.