'Little smile..': Jack Clarke's message for Sunderland fans and interesting verdict on start to season

Jack Clarke has thanked Sunderland fans for their support and believes there is even more to come after his spellbinding performance so far this season.

Clarke already has nine goals the campaign, second only to Blackburn Rovers' Sammie Szmodics.

The 22-year-old has been a key part of Sunderland's strong start to the campaign, with the Black Cats sixth in the table ahead of the Championship's return this weekend. Clarke's form has led to vocal backing from the terraces, with the Sunderland support adopting a new chant to the tune of Joy Division's 'Love will tear us apart'.

And speaking via SkyBet, Clarke has said the recognition and support is driving him on during games.

“The fans are brilliant up here, everyone knows that," Clarke said.

"They’re a massive part of the club and they come out in their numbers every single week to support us and to get a chant from them makes you feel like you’ve really imposed yourself in the squad, in the team, and in the club. Every time they start singing it, I get a little smile on my face, and it gives me that little bit of support to keep me going. I really appreciate it.”

Clarke has identified the tactical freedom he is given in possession by head coach Tony Mowbray as the key to his success, and feels the team are well placed even if they feel they could have landed even more points from the opening 16 games.

“I think my personal success has just come from the way the team is playing. As long as the team is playing well, it’s easy for certain players to flourish and the way the manager sets us up to play, I get a lot of freedom and so does Patrick [Roberts] and Abdoullah Ba, or whoever else is playing on the opposite side," Clarke said.

“He [Tony Mowbray] has a lot of trust in us to try and create things when we get the ball and that suits me. I’m trying things all the time and I only really need one or two things to come off in a game and I feel like I've done my job.

“He gives me a lot of freedom to go out there and express myself and I’m getting a lot of enjoyment out of that. I get a lot of the ball so when I get it, I trust myself to do the right things and most of the time this season it’s come off, so I'm happy about that.

“As a team we’ve started well, and we feel we could have had a few more points. We’ve been a bit disappointed after certain games because we feel our performance levels have been high. That’s the same for me as well because I feel I could have had even more goals and assists under my belt, but you can’t predict what’s going to happen in a game.

“You just have to give what you can to the game and hopefully we come out with the right results and performances. I think we’ve done that well so far in spells this season.”

Sunderland return to Championship action at Plymouth Argyle on Saturday afternoon.