There’s no doubt the Martin O’Neill effect has made a substantial difference to Sunderland’s recent fortunes. With thirteen points in the six games since the Irishman has taken the reigns, in comparison to eleven points in fourteen fixtures under the guidance of Steve Bruce, the new manager has brought about an increased interest in his players as Fantasy assets…
One of the main beneficiaries of the new regime on Wearside has been young James McClean. Prior to O’Neill’s introduction, the winger had failed to appear in a single minute of Sunderland’s season as the club sank ever-closer to the relegation zone. Bruce, to his credit, was the one who acquired McClean but a refusal to afford him a first-team chance has, on reflection, proved something of an unfortunate oversight.
Picking up maximum Fantasy Premier League (FPL) bonus points in his two starts under O’Neill, in addition to notching a goal in the 4-1 win at Wigan, McClean has been propelled onto Fantasy radars as a strong cut-price option. Coming in at just 4.5, he continued his strong form last weekend, scoring and assisting in the 2-0 FA Cup win at Peterborough and, with winter wildcards being weighed up, his name is popping up in plenty provisional squads.
Is this surge of interest justified? We delved deeper into McClean’s performance statistics so far to judge his role in the Sunderland revival and assess his likely potential for the weeks ahead compared to his team-mates, and another familiar name in his FPL price bracket…
