Steve Bruce has admitted he was left wondering what might have been for Sunderland as he watched England edge out Spain.
Sunderland boss gets glimpse of past as England overcome Spain
Steve Bruce has admitted he was left wondering what might have been for Sunderland as he watched England edge out World Cup winners Spain at Wembley.
Fabio Capello's men won 1-0 last Saturday with Darren Bent spearheading the attack and Danny Welbeck taking over when he was replaced midway through the second half.
Just 12 months ago, the pair were part of a quartet of strikers at the Stadium of Light - Asamoah Gyan and Fraizer Campbell were the others - which Bruce rated as among the best the Black Cats had ever had.
But the Wearsiders will head into their weekend clash with Fulham with none of the four available after Bent's departure for Aston Villa in January, Welbeck's return to parent club Manchester United, Gyan's loan move to the United Arab Emirates and Campbell's latest injury misery.
Talent
"As I sat and watched England at the weekend, our two centre-forwards this time last year were Welbeck and Bent," Bruce said.
"To lose that talent and replace them is going to take some time and some doing, but gradually we are getting there. That's football, isn't it? That's sometimes what happens."
Welbeck has built upon his season in the North East to establish himself as a genuine first-team player at United, and Bruce knew his hopes of securing a second temporary move were forlorn.
He invested heavily in Ipswich teenager Connor Wickham and brought South Korea international Ji Dong-won to England before securing Arsenal frontman Nicklas Bendtner on loan as Gyan's itchy feet carried him to the Middle East.
However, a knee ligament problem which will sideline Wickham for weeks rather than months, and the after-effects of Ji's international jet-setting, have depleted Bruce's resources once again.
No chance
He said: "With Welbeck, we knew how well he was doing and there was no chance of us retaining him. We knew that, if we are being honest.
"Yes, they are going to take some replacing, but Connor was starting to grow into it, and certainly Nicklas has benefited from coming to Sunderland.
"I think he has got five in five for his international team since he has come to Sunderland.
"I spoke to [Denmark boss] Morten Olsen and he was delighted with his performances, and I have to say, so am I for us. He's done terrifically well, so let's hope he keeps doing that."
Ryan Noble thrust himself forward with a hat-trick in the reserves' 3-0 derby win over Newcastle on Wednesday night, and Bruce admitted the 19-year-old could be involved.
He said: "The kid, physically, has still got a long way to go. He took his top off the other day and he was still like a little boy, bless him. But we have got a few injuries and he might be involved."
