Regis Le Bris described Tom Watson as a “gift” after the winger starred for Sunderland and scored both goals in their 2-1 victory over Stoke.
Making only his fifth Sky Bet Championship start for the Black Cats, the 18-year-old cancelled out Lewis Koumas’ early opener before firing a deserved late winner for the promotion hopefuls.
The victory brought Sunderland’s six-game Championship winless run to an end, much to the delight of Le Bris, who is thrilled with how quickly and impressively Watson is developing.
“He’s very strong; he is a very good winger for this team and in this league,” said Sunderland’s boss.
“He works well and the system is well designed for him. We can use him very quickly and play to his main strengths.
“He’s powerful; he can dribble; he can move inside and outside and he scored. Today he was very strong.”
Watson’s first Championship start for Sunderland only came last month but the teenager has quickly established himself in the side in the absence of the injured Romaine Mundle.
Le Bris said: “Players always need time to adapt. So far, Tommy has developed very fast.
“We need that kind of profile. I like it. When you have a winger with the ability to run inside and outside and cross, it’s a gift for a coach and a team.
“Now he will face the difficulties every player has to face, such as consistency and needing to defend as well. There are many things to develop but it was an interesting game for him.”
After making a blistering start to the season, Sunderland lost momentum in recent weeks with five straight draws before a defeat to Sheffield United last time out. But they deserved their victory against Stoke.
Le Bris said: “With the weather and the opponent, who played good football, it was difficult, but I think we deserved to win this game.
“We had many chances to score but we didn’t, and we had to wait until the end. We didn’t give up and this was the most important idea today because, with the last maybe four games, we had the feeling that it was possible to win but we drew or we lost.”
Sunderland got off to a nightmare start when Koumas broke the deadlock after just six minutes but Watson immediately levelled for the hosts.
The Black Cats then missed a string of chances, with striker Wilson Isidor guilty of spurning three glorious opportunities. Isidor had the ball in the net 11 minutes from time but it was ruled out for offside and Sunderland looked set to be frustrated.
But their persistence paid off when Watson, who was reportedly wanted by Brighton in the summer transfer window, struck the winner four minutes from time.
The Potters have now lost two games on the bounce and are winless in five.
Boss Narcis Pelach said: “I’m disappointed, disappointed because we lost at the very end with a deflected goal.
“They had a lot of shots but we had our chances and moments as well.
“I’m disappointed because we conceded the first goal just after we had scored.
“It’s a situation we can avoid; we just need to win the ball in the air. He’s competing for the ball in the air and no one went for it.
“We could have taken something from the game because at times we were good on the ball, trying to attack them and accelerate the action through the middle. But they are a good side as well.
“In the final third, they have presence, they switch the ball fast and they have wingers who can do damage in one-on-one situations.
“We had people there blocking shots, a lot of bodies, but I’m disappointed with the result.”
