Mowbray explains how Amad developed his game during the winter break

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Sunderland manager Tony Mowbray has explained how Manchester United loanee Amad developed his game during the winter break.

The 20-year-old opened the scoring in the Black Cats’ 3-0 Championship win against Millwall at the Stadium of Light yesterday.

It meant Sunderland and United’s number 16 had scored in back-to-back Championship games for the first time during his season-long loan spell up north.

The four-time Ivory Coast international also scored for Sunderland during a mid-season friendly against Al-Shabab in Dubai last month.

Mowbray explains how Amad developed his game during the winter break

The former Atalanta youngster is one of the most in-form and feared players in the Championship currently, and his confidence will likely be soaring with every passing influential performance.

After making just one start in his first eight appearances for the Black Cats, Amad has started the last six games and he has four goals and one assist during that purple patch.

In the 53rd minute against Millwall, Sunderland striker Ellis Simms’ flick fell perfectly for Amad to tap home from a yard out.

But speaking after the game, the former Blackburn Rovers manager explained why he felt Amad wouldn’t have scored that type of goal prior to the winter break.

Mowbray said: “In the right position. The most pleasing thing for me is that a couple of weeks he might have been stood out on the right wing waiting for the ball to come out to him, and yet he was at the back stick with a tap in.

“They’re all little parts of the game that he had to improve on because he needed to put goals and assists by his name.

“We could all see what a wonderful talent he was and how brilliant he was at dribbling, but he needed to score, assist and be in the right positions, and there he was with a one-touch finish.”

Mowbray stressed last week that while Erik ten Hag, whose attacking options have reduced following the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, has the option of recalling Amad in January, he believes his development would benefit from remaining at the Stadium of Light.