Edouard Michut will be given the chance to shine in the second half of Sunderland season insists Tony Mowbray, with the Frenchman having spent the last four months as a bit-part player on Wearside. On-loan Paris St Germain midfielder Michut has struggled with a series of minor injuries which have meant he has yet to start a game for the Black Cats, with his four substitute appearances so far totalling just 66 minutes, although he is in the squad for this afternoon's trip to Hull City.
Head coach Mowbray says Michut's talent is not in any doubt, and it is merely a case of the 19-year-old getting fully back up to speed after his latest leg injury and proving that he can withstand the rigours of Championship football. Sunderland have taken Michut on loan for the season and the deal contains a clause to convert it into a permanent transfer next summer, although there are likely to be conditions attached.
Mowbray feels there will be better times and more opportunities for Michut in the second half of the campaign, saying: "Edouard was in my office on Thursday and he has had a few niggles, a few knocks, a few injuries, but I think the second half of the season is going to be better for him. He has to be more robust, ready for the English game.
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"There are lots of games, lots of three-game weeks, and the opportunity will be there for him so much more in the second half of the season than it has been in the first half, so he has to be ready. That's the key.
"He hasn't played for four, five, or six weeks. He's trained in that time on his own, and done some fitness work and in his own mind he thinks he's ready, yet he hasn't kicked a ball for five weeks and I'm trying to get that across to him.
"I'm telling him that the Championship is a pretty unforgiving place, if you think you can go in and play in central midfield having not kicked a ball in anger for five or six weeks. We'll see. We'll take him along [to Hull this afternoon], we'll see whether he gets on the bench and whether he gets on the pitch.
"I've told him about the process, really. He has to be patient."
While Michut has made only fleeting appearances, his last outing in the draw at Luton Town at the end of October was his best display since arriving at the club which has only made the injury he then picked up all the more frustrating. And Mowbray points out that Michut's quality is immediately evident on the training ground, as befits a player who was until recently training alongside PSG stars Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe - two players who will face each other in tomorrow's World Cup final as Argentina take on France.
"I'm not afraid of his talent - his talent is very obvious when you watch him train, how tight he is with the ball, he passes forward and can run with it, he's a good footballer," said Mowbray. "He's a lad who six months ago was training with Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe.
"I've got total respect for his talent but he has to train a little bit more in my mind, train every day and build up some resilience and become robust to the demands of playing in England."
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