As reported earlier this week, Craig Gordon has announced that he remains troubled by a knee injury that has seen him sit out the last three league encounters. Having excelled in his absence, young Simon Mignolet now looks nailed-on to feature in the Black Cats’ end of season run-in, presenting an extremely attractive option for Fantasy Managers.

There should be no doubt about Mignolet’s talent. After his man-of-the-match performance against Arsenal at the Emirates, manager Steve Bruce hailed the Belgian international’s heroics and talked up his prospects at the Stadium of Light…

“He’s got a big part to play in the future of the club, we’ve unearthed a very good young goalkeeper. It’s a big pat on the back to everybody whose helped get him here. The biggest compliment of all is to himself. He’s a fantastic goalkeeper, although we’re not surprised he’s done so well because we work with him every day. He’s brave, big and the potential is all there.”

In a straight Fantasy Premier League (FPL) comparison with Gordon, Mignolet comes out on top with 63 points compared to 56 – both players have played 15 games. Mignolet just nudges ahead on clean sheets, from the 12 that Sunderland have achieved this season, the Belgian has been in between the sticks for 7 of them. Save points have also come is way with 5, 7, 2 saves in his last three outings and before that, way back in December against Fulham, Mignolet managed 7 returning 2 points for his owners.

For Fantasy Premier League (FPL) Managers, now couldn’t be a better time to invest in Sunderland as a source of Fantasy points – a tricky trip to Eastlands at the weekend being the only real thorn to be found amongst their final eight fixtures (mcy, WBA, bir, WIG, FUL, bol, WOL, whm). With injuries clearing, Steve Bruce is certainly bullish about his side’s prospects – the return of Lee Cattermole to shield the back four could well be the key factor and should help Sunderland to restore the defensive resolve that has seen them keep those 12 clean sheets.

If you were worried about Sunderland’s defensive prospects over any of their away fixtures, then alternating Mignolet with Newcastle’s Steve Harper is certainly one option that fits snugly. The North East rivals tend to rotate home matches, with the Magpies’ complementing Sunderland’s perfectly over the final eight gameweeks (WOL, WBA MUN, WIG, FUL, BIR, WOL, WBA). While that combination looks strong, many Fantasy Managers will also be assessing a possible partnership with Birmingham’s Ben Foster. This works well in the short-term offering a very decent run in the next five (BOL WBA SUN/che WIG WOL).

Apart from Mignolet’s shot-stopping skills and Sunderland’s strong run of opponents, he is also a budget option at just 3.9 on the FPL game. A price like this can free up funds for other areas of the team that may need a substantial boost in the coming weeks. With an ownership of just 3.6%, Mignolet also has the “differential” potential to fetch you valuable points with the option to double up on the Sunderland defence for their run of three home games in four from gameweek 32.