When Jamie Vardy was lifting the Premier League trophy for Leicester City in May 2016, Chris Rigg, a month before his ninth birthday, still had two years of primary school remaining. Now, three-months shy of his 17th birthday, Rigg made his full Championship debut for Sunderland against Vardy and Leicester at the Stadium of Light.
Rigg’s ascension on Wearside has been fast-tracked over the course of the last year after he made history when becoming the club’s youngest outfield player at just 15 years and 203 days old when making his debut in last season’s FA Cup third round tie with Shrewsbury Town.
It provided a springboard for Rigg, who has bypassed the club’s under-18 and 21s programmes to form part of the first team squad on no less than 23 occasions this season where he made history once again when becoming the club’s youngest ever league goalscorer when coming on as a substitute to score Sunderland’s fifth goal in the 5-0 win over Southampton in September – adding to his first goal for the club when equalising against Crewe Alexandra in the League Cup, as the teenager made a big impression in the opening month of the campaign.
Rigg made ten appearances in the Championship as a substitute before fulfilling ‘a dream’ when being handed his first league start for the club in Tuesday’s defeat to the former Premier League champions, and current Championship leaders, Leicester. Having impressed both Tony Mowbray and Michael Beale before him, interim head coach Mike Dodds was the one to finally show his full faith in the England youth international in the Championship.
“This has been a dream come true for me,” said Rigg. “To see my name in the starting XI was a surreal moment.
“I was eight years old when Jamie Vardy and Leicester won the Premier League and now I’m chasing him down to win the ball back. I don’t tend to think about who I am playing against too much because I aim to go out there and compete at the highest level and give everything for Sunderland, but that was a bit surreal.
“We are disappointed with the defeat,” Rigg continued. “I believe we deserved a lot more from the game, but I really enjoy playing at the Stadium of Light and in front of our supporters.
“There are positives to take, especially from the second half. We played with intensity that gives us a foundation to take into the next game.”
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Interviews and the spotlight are things that Rigg may have to get used to over the coming years as his development continues to impress those at the Academy of Light, as well as a number of elite-level clubs who continue to keep tabs on the rising teenage star.
Rigg did not look out of place against a Leicester side who look primed for a return to the Premier League up against the likes of the impressive Stephy Mavididi, the highly-rated Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and former Tottenham Hotspur and ten-time England senior international Harry Winks, as well as Vardy. The midfielder registered the highest dribble and carry on-ball-value (OBV) for Sunderland at 0.17 and was only bettered by Leicester’s Mavididi (0.31) and Abdul Fatawu (0.19). He won seven of eight ground duels, completed 100 per cent of his dribbles and had a 74 per cent pass success rate. Only Trai Hume was ranked higher than Rigg for Sunderland as an overall rating in the game.
Rigg’s display impressed interim head coach Dodds, who is likely to utilise the youngster more frequently in the closing weeks of the season after admitting the potential is high for a player already capped 26 times at international youth level including at the under-17s World Cup in Indonesia.
“I really liked his performance. I felt he was really selfless in terms of the out of possession stuff,” said Dodds. “They tweaked one or two things which we didn't expect and I felt Riggy adapted to it really well.
“I'll be honest, the plan was to get an hour out of him. I knew he'd go to the well. I knew he would give us absolutely everything which is why I knew it would be a good game for him, because we needed everyone to empty the tank. I just felt in the second half he was so effective that I left him on for as long as I possibly could.
“Taking in to account he's a first-year scholar, people should be excited by Riggy. I'm excited to work with him over the next few years. I think he's potentially a wonderful talent.”
For Rigg, it will be a case of remaining grounded as he looks to stake a claim for a more regular run in Sunderland’s line-up during the final 10 games of the season, with his first start against Leicester a taste of things to come.
“If someone told me all of this would happen at the start of the campaign, I’d have bitten their hand off,” said Rigg.
“Doddsy spoke to me before the game and just said enjoy it. This is a real privilege for me. It is what I have dreamt of for a very long time.
“I am so grateful for the opportunities and hope there are many more to come.”
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