Sunderland's risky contract decision explained as hat-trick hero prepares to depart despite stunning form

Sunderland fans could be forgiven for watching the action from Reading on Monday night and thinking, 'hang on, we're letting this kid go?!'.

Ellis Taylor's hat-trick from a full back position was the catalyst for the U21s' thrilling victory in the Premier League 2 play-off semi final, a win that sets them up for a final against Spurs. It's a remarkable achievement in itself but especially when the pre-season prediction was that the Black Cats might find the going tougher this season with more fixtures against the elite, top-tier academy sides. Taylor's match winning exploits were no flash in the pan, either. He has worn the captain's armband with distinction in recent weeks and even in a campaign that was for a while impacted by injury, his goal contributions run into double figures. Reacting to his performance on social media, Luke O'Nien hailed Taylor's 'wand of a left foot' and said that he had been the most consistent trainer in the first-team environment this season. You can understand many fans are left scratching their heads, just days after it was confirmed that he would be leaving the club this summer.

Of all the decisions Sunderland's hierarchy made around the retained list, this was surely one of the most difficult. Taylor deserves immense credit for the campaign he has been able to produce, bouncing back from what had been a difficult time both on and off the pitch. In the summer of 2022, Taylor's performance for the first team in a late pre-season friendly at Hartlepool United convinced the then League Two outfit to seal a loan deal within days. It looked a good fit from a footballing perspective but there was also a huge emotional pull for the player - Hartlepool was a club with a deep personal connection for both himself and his family, and the opportunity to put on that shirt was one that he was never going to turn down. From a footballing perspective, it proved to be the wrong move at the wrong time. Paul Hartley had been key to his arrival but was dismissed by September and the arrival of Keith Curle in the dugout never seemed likely to work in a young loanee's favour. Curle praised Taylor's technical ability but openly questioned what position he would play in his preferred 3-5-2 system and reading between the lines, there were obvious doubts over whether he felt he was suited to the direct style that would be adopted to try and keep the club up. Taylor returned to Sunderland in January but it was a very difficult time off the pitch for someone so young.

To produce what he has this season is a hell of an achievement, and one that will stand him in good stead as he now prepares to go out and take his next steps in the senior game. So why wasn't it enough to earn a new deal at Sunderland? It is in many ways a harsh decision but one that also makes sense when you consider the senior squad's composition heading into next season. Taylor is versatile but in the key positions that he has been deployed for the U21s, competition is significant. He initially broke through as a right winger, and his threat in that position was summed up by the brilliance of two of his goals driving in from the right at Reading. But there Sunderland have Patrick Roberts, Abdoullah Ba and Romaine Mundle all under contract for next season. He can also play in either of the full back roles, and has for a while been seen by Sunderland as potentially most likely to make his career as a left wing back. There, though, Sunderland have Aji Alese, Dennis Cirkin and then Leo Hjelde for added cover. On the other flank, Trai Hume is certain to start the new campaign given his outstanding form and Timothee Pembele was starting to make progress as his understudy by the end of the season. Taylor has trained consistently with the first team at various stages of the last two campaigns, but has found senior minutes very limited.

Sunderland's decision was to assess how likely that was to change next season and given that competition for places is significant even before the summer recruitment drive begins, their answer was that it wasn't. And at 21, the feeling is that another campaign of youth football is unlikely to do his development prospects a great deal of good. Taylor needs senior football at his age, something which he still to this point has little experience of. The safe option for Sunderland would undoubtedly have been to have looked at a new deal, assessed his progress in pre-season and then looked for a loan move if minutes on Wearside looked unlikely. This way represents something of a gamble on Sunderland's part but it also gives the youngster the chance to go and make a home somewhere, to be a key part of a squad on a longer-term contract rather than just another loanee.

The one key positive from this recent run is that Taylor will undoubtedly have put himself on the radar of clubs at a higher level than would have been the case this time last year. He has proven himself to be a player with real quality most importantly, an impressive professionalism and a real resilience. There's every chance he can make Sunderland look foolish in the years ahead, and yet it can also be true that this decision comes at the right time for him to go and forge a career in the senior game. His Sunderland story is far from over yet, though. Spurs lie in wait this weekend and given what he's produced so far this season, there may yet be something special in the works.