Sunderland’s Mason Burstow challenge and how Chelsea striker fared on his Cats debut in QPR win

After saying new signing Mason Burstow was giving footballs net rash due to his clinical finishing in training, Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray threw the striker straight into his starting XI against QPR.

The Chelsea loanee, 20, has had a bit of time over the international break to integrate with his new teammates and settle in on Wearside, yet he will have learnt much more from his first Championship appearance.

Burstow played 61 minutes at Loftus Road, with Sunderland winning the game 3-1, before being replaced by another debutant Adil Aouchiche, a move which saw Jobe Bellingham move further forward.

But while Burstow had been converting chances with ease on the training pitches at the Academy of Light, he didn’t receive a clear-cut opportunity here.

The striker will clearly add pace to Sunderland’s forward line, yet there weren’t many chances to run in behind QPR’s three centre-halves, with the hosts dropping even deeper after Jack Colback’s red card left them a man down in the 21st minute.

Burstow is also coming into a team which has adapted to play without a natural centre-forward over the last year, when the player who is predominantly leading the line is also required to drop deeper and link up play.

Of Burstow’s nine received passes, just one came inside the QPR penalty area, with the striker trying to contribute in the build-up play and completing all 12 of his attempted passes (according to Wyscout).

The challenge for Burstow will now be to learn when to come short, when to run off the last defender and when to provide an option in the box for his teammates to pick out.

Sunderland’s players will also have to adapt to utilise having a natural striker on the pitch.

Against opponents who play with a higher defensive line and aren’t trying to compensate for an early red card, Burstow is likely to receive more opportunities to showcase his abilities.

Despite a quiet debut, the forward has clearly impressed during his first few weeks on Wearside, while he should give the side a different option to build on an impressive run of results and performances.