Eliezer Mayenda urges Regis Le Bris to 'be careful' with 'special' Sunderland teammate

Sunderland striker Eliezer Mayenda has suggested that the Black Cats must “be careful” when it comes to managing teammate Chris Rigg’s game time over the coming months.

Both teenagers have been breakout stars of Sunderland’s impressive early season form, with Mayenda frequently leading the line prior to a recent injury setback, and Rigg establishing himself as a key presence in the centre of midfield. For his part, Mayenda also understands what it is like to emerge as a first team talent at the age of 17, having been a regular for French outfit FC Sochaux before making the move to Wearside. And reflecting on his own experiences during an interview with the Black Cats’ in-house media team, the Spaniard emphasised the need for patience where Rigg is concerned.

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He said: “When I was in France, it was similar for me and Riggy. I talked with him about that. I said that he is a special player, and everybody knows. We need to be careful with him because he is young and hopefully, he can play every game, but we need to be careful because I was in the same situation in France.

“It’s been a good season for him so far so hopefully he can keep it up. I am so happy for him, but I know myself that it is not easy. But he works hard every day so hopefully it won’t be a problem for him.”

Mayenda also went on to address Sunderland’s aspirations for the new campaign, and maintains that promotion is a possibility. He added: “Every supporter wants to see us back in the Premier League. It won’t be easy, but this team has the quality to push for that this season and be in a strong position.

“We’ll play another 40 games so the season is long, but we have good quality in defence, midfield and attack. Patto is amazing in goal too. We need to believe in ourselves. We need to be confident in every game. Our ambition is to get to the Premier League, but we need to work to get there. We work very well in training every day. It’s a good start this season but we need to keep going. Everyone has the same objective and I believe in my teammates.

“Last season, I said that we need to be patient with this team because it is really young. I am playing more games, we have more quality, the gaffer is a good coach, and he knows what we need in this team.”