Former Sunderland player Kieron Brady has suggested that Phil Parkinson will be needing to drop Charlie Wyke from the starting line-up, and replace him with Kyle Lafferty against Gillingham on Saturday.

Wyke has been struggling to find his best form in front of goal for the Black Cats over the last few weeks, with the 27-year-old having managed to register just one goal in his last seven League appearances – and the striker was unable to really make much of an impact on the game as Sunderland fell to a 1-0 defeat at promotion rivals Coventry City last weekend.

Despite Wyke never really managing to hit a really consistent run of goalscoring form so far this term - with the striker having only scored five goals in 26 league appearances - Parkinson has still entrusted him to lead the line and provide a physical presence up front for the Black Cats.

However, Sunderland do have Lafferty as an option to bring into the starting line-up, with the forward having made nine appearances in League One since he arrived at the club in January – and it could potentially be the right time for him to come into the starting line-up now.

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Speaking on BBC Newcastle’s Sunderland AFC podcast, Brady urged Parkinson to make the change up front to provide the Black Cats with something different against Gillingham, as they look to bounce back from their defeat at Coventry last time out.

He said: “I think the change that seems to be prominent in most fans’ thoughts is the possibility of bringing in Kyle Lafferty for Charlie Wyke.

“I think that with the modest investment in January, I think in many ways that has been reflected in Phil Parkinson's team selections.

“It's only been Bailey Wright that has come in and been a regular starter until he gets injured.

“Kyle Lafferty would certainly offer you greater mobility and just as much of a physical presence as what we've been seeing recently from Charlie Wyke.

“I also think that there's a much greater likelihood that he would offer more in terms of both goals and assists.

“Phil Parkinson has been very quick to publicly defend Charlie Wyke. It's going to be interesting because in one respect, no manager likes to think that he's making a decision based on the fact that fans, media pundits, etc, can pinpoint an area and suggest that they know better, but the statistics are there.”

The verdict

Brady is probably right to suggest that Sunderland could be in need of giving Lafferty a run of games in the starting line-up in place of Wyke, with the 27-year-old struggling for form in front of goal despite at times offering a useful physical presence up front for Parkinson’s side.

However, Lafferty, as Brady suggests, would offer some more mobility and movement up front which could help them pose a different sort of problem for opposition defences during the last few matches of the season, and that could be key to helping them get back to winning ways.

Parkinson clearly believes Wyke is an important member of his squad, and the striker has been a reliable presence up front in terms of holding the ball up and linking the play, but at this stage of the season the Black Cats are in need of someone up front who can be relied upon to make the difference in the last third.

That means that Parkinson should give Lafferty the chance to start and see if he can manage to get himself on a run of form in front of goal, which could prove to be the difference in their bid to secure promotion to the Championship come the end of the campaign.