Sunderland goalkeeper Lee Burge has suggested he appreciates that Ron-Thorben Hoffmann has been performing well so far this season and that he needs to work hard to improve to get more game time.

Lee Johnson made the decision to bring Hoffmann into the Stadium of Light on a loan deal from Bayern Munich in the summer to strengthen the options he has available to him in the goalkeeping department this term.

Hoffmann has swiftly established himself as Sunderland’s first-choice keeper in League One ahead of Burge and the 22-year-old has impressed in his eight league appearances to date. That comes with him averaging 3.1 saves per game and also recording three clean sheets in that time.

Burge is therefore having to bide his time to get regular game time for Sunderland, but he has made three league appearances and also has been Johnson’s choice in goal for their League Cup matches.

Against QPR in midweek, Burge delivered a stand out performance during the 90 minutes to make some crucial saves to help ensure the Black Cats took the tie to penalties. He was then able to make the difference in the shootout for Sunderland.

Speaking to the Sunderland Echo, Burge suggested that he understands why he has not been playing as often this season in the league due to Hoffmann’s form. While he added that he just needs to improve his game and learn from the Bayern Munich loanee.

He said: “Unfortunately I had a bit of an injury at the start of the season and Patto did well when he came in.

“Thorben has been brilliant since he’s come in so it’s just all competition and at the end of the day we just have to work each other really hard and that’s what we have been doing.

“I have to take things off his game and he can hopefully take stuff off my game and that’s how you learn and get better. It’s enjoyable.”

The verdict

This is an excellent attitude for Burge to have adopted and it shows a lot of maturity in him that he is able to recognise that Hoffmann is doing enough to secure his place as the Black Cats’ number one in the league so far this season.

Burge is a goalkeeper that has always been capable of developing into a top quality performer, but he has at times also made some high-profile mistakes that have dented his confidence. He seems to be keen to improve and learn from a keeper of Hoffmann’s quality and potential.

Against QPR, Burge showed excellent form and it was a performance that could even give Johnson something to really think about for the next few games in League One.

Sunderland are fortunate to have a keeper of Burge’s quality as part of their squad and he is not showing signs of downing tools due to his lack of minutes.

That will mean that should anything happen to Hoffmann, the Black Cats can be confident that they will still be fine.