Dan Neil has returned refreshed and back to his best after being given a much-needed breather, according to Sunderland boss Alex Neil. Midfielder Neil was one of the group of young players that the head coach had said looked fatigued and jaded when he first took over last month, and after starting him in his first two games in charge he pulled him out of the team.
The 20-year-old has been used only sparingly from the bench in recent weeks, but today against basement side Crewe he made a big impact from the bench and scored the opening goal in Sunderland's 2-0 win at the Stadium of Light which kept them firmly in the hunt for a play-off place. Neil said: "I think Dan Neil showed me today exactly why people have been speaking so highly about him.
"Whereas, if I'm honest, I hadn't really seen that up to this point. He's naturally a really good player, but I thought he was excellent when he came on.
