Sunderland claimed a second victory in their fourth pre-season friendly yesterday.
The Black Cats jetted off to Spain last week and had so far drawn 1-1 with Nottingham Forest before they took on Eldense at the Pinatar Arena.
Sunderland took the lead through Tommy Watson in the first half, before the Spanish outfit equalised minutes later.
It was then Luis Hemir that popped up with the winner, rocketing a screamer into the top corner from outside the area to gift Sunderland the lead.
The striker certainly didn’t show that ability in the Championship last season, having previously really impressed in last summer’s pre-season too.
Hemir failed to score a single goal last season though and will be hoping he can enjoy more success this time round.
Luis Hemir urged to translate ‘impressive’ training sessions into Championship matches
He first needs to impress Regis Le Bris though, and the Frenchman’s latest comments suggest he is certainly catching his eye.
Speaking to Sunderland Echo after the match, Le Bris said: “His shot is impressive, we see it during every training session and every technical exercise.
“Of course, it is different to do it during the training sessions and in the game. Now, he has this potential and he has to improve to implement it during competitive games like in the Championship.”
What is the problem with Hemir at Sunderland?
It wasn’t really Hemir’s ability that was questioned last season, having made it very clear he knows how to find the back of the net last summer.
However, the real issue with him was his lack of movement and apparent laziness.
Most 20-year-olds would be sprinting for the ball and wanting to show what he could do, but Hemir spent last season looking like he couldn’t be bothered and was just extremely slow on and off the ball.
He could well have been struggling off the pitch after moving to a new country, but it is certainly not an attitude that Sunderland fans will accept.
Players like Jewison Bennette were in a similar situation of leaving home to move to Wearside, but the Costa Rican was appreciated because it was clear he was putting in a lot of work and was always chasing down the ball.
Hemir is never going to get anywhere at Sunderland if he doesn’t make more of an effort, but his impression on Le Bris in training is surely a positive sign that he could be making improvements.
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