The question was posed to both Sunderland and Mike Dodds against Swansea City: Could they cope without Jack Clarke? The evidence would suggest not, but Dodds was keen to establish an element of reality about the situation.
So much of Sunderland’s season has hinged on Clarke – whether it be through his goals or his assists – but what the 2-1 defeat to Swansea demonstrated was just how instrumental he is as an outlet for this Sunderland side. His presence draws the attention of multiple defenders, it dictates opposition game plans, putting it bluntly; he is the difference.
That is not something lost on Dodds, who insisted any team in the Championship would miss Clarke – the winger sidelined with an ankle injury following the defeat at Birmingham City.
“Jack Clarke is one of the best wingers in the league,” said Dodds. “If you take Jack Clarke out of any of the teams in the league, he’s a miss. On the flipside, I’m also a little bit excited around tweaking and changing one or two things.
“The last time [I was in charge], I showed that I will make decisions that I feel is best for the group and when you have someone like Jack who has been taken out of the team, you have to try and come up with solutions to that.”
But those solutions Dodds tried to employ in Clarke’s absence failed to measure up at the Stadium of Light. Whether it be tactically, through what was a confused set-up by Dodds, or personnel, Clarke’s injury had a significant impact.
With 19 goal contributions this season, it’s easy to see why Clarke would be a miss – Sunderland’s next best being Dan Neil with eight. But if Sunderland’s philosophy of recruiting players with potential to, perhaps, go on and fill the void which will be left by Clarke in the future when he moves on from the club, this was a damning example of how long the road may be to replicate Clarke’s quality.
Sunderland brought in former Tottenham Hotspur winger Romaine Mundle in the January transfer window – the 20-year-old potentially earmarked as a long-term replacement for Clarke – whilst the likes of Abdoullah Ba and Nazariy Rusyn have been brought in during windows gone-by.
Here against Swansea, it was Ba and Rusyn who were tasked with finding a way through in Clarke’s absence before Mundle’s introduction in the second half. But Dodds’ side lacked the spark and invention Clarke can bring as they fell to a 15th defeat of the season without that moment of magic and inspiration to turn to.
But while supporters may have left the Stadium of Light frustrated by the shortcomings of their side without Clarke, Dodds was keen to address the matter in managing the expectations of those players who missed their opportunity to impress by using Clarke as the perfect example from when he first arrived on Wearside.
“No, I think there’s a level of responsibility on me as well,” Dodds told We Are Sunderland when asked if he was concerned by nobody stepping up to replace Clarke. “We can say that no-one really grabbed the opportunity [to replace Jack], the first half performance was really, really disappointing. The second half performance is a lot more of what we all want to see.
“I’m not using Jack as an excuse [as to why we lost the game], I won’t allow it to be used as an excuse. The thing with Jack is, Jack’s not just a good player for us. We’re probably talking about the best winger in the league. We’re not just talking about a one off player. We’re talking about one of the best players in the league, if not the best winger in the league. Let’s be honest, you’re not replacing Jack Clarke.
“One thing I will say, and this is really important, when Jack Clarke came to the football club, Jack Clarke wasn’t Jack Clarke now. That’s a really important message and we have to make sure that message is really clear with the likes of Romaine and Abdoullah and Naz.
“I appreciate there will be some frustration amongst the fans and I wish I could fast-forward time. But Jack Clarke, when he came to the football club, wasn’t the Jack Clarke we see now and that’s a message people need to, not necessarily understand because they’re fans and they want to win games of football, but from where I’m sitting we’ve got to make sure we work with the other players to make sure we get another Jack Clarke.”
Dodds' summary holds plenty of substance. Clarke had struggled in a number of loan spells prior to finding his feet with Sunderland when joining in 2022. Even then, the winger was not necessarily the first name on the teamsheet as we see today - Clarke in fact being named on the bench in Sunderland's League One play-off final win over Wycombe Wanderers, for example.
The way Clarke has developed his game in the season and a half since, however, has been hugely impressive and is why he will likely move onto a higher level in the summer, with Sunderland's promotion hopes dwindling by the week.
But the variation of Clarke we have seen this season is not the variation who joined the club two years ago, which lends itself to some deliberation when judging those who have joined the club over the course of the last six to twelve months.
In the here and now, however, that does not help Sunderland's cause and the sooner Clarke returns to the line-up the better, with Dodds reconfirming the 23-year-old will be assessed on Monday.
"That’s what I’m being told," said Dodds. "He’s raring to go. He’s a robust boy. Since he came in he’s hardly missed any football. He never misses training, hence the reason why we thought he’d be available, but for whatever reason that hasn’t happened."
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