“If he leaves…” – Mike Dodds provides contract and transfer update on 16-year-old Sunderland wonderkid

A contract and transfer update on Sunderland wonderkid Chris Rigg, 16, has been provided by Mike Dodds.In light of strong transfer interest from elite European clubs, Mike Dodds has spoken about the contract situation surrounding 16-year-old Sunderland wonderkid Chris Rigg.

The Echo said that Rigg and Sunderland have reached an agreement in principle for the Hebburn native to sign professional terms when he turns 17 on June 18. However, until the contract is signed, higher-level teams may try to recruit the midfield youngster.

Dodds said, “That’s out of my remit if that’s the right phrase to use,” in response to a question concerning Rigg’s Sunderland contract status. I will say this, though: Riggy and I get along well. He is aware that I have already worked with many talented young athletes.

“He deserved his chance the other night, and we have a connection where we can be honest with each other. He is an extremely skilled trainer. I didn’t think his age mattered; instead, I felt his overall performance was extremely excellent.

“As I’ve previously stated, I believe Sunderland supporters should be ecstatic about him, but there also needs to be an awareness or respect for the fact that he’s still a baby. We must correctly handle him. We could have a very good football player if we do that and he performs his duties in terms of keeping his feet on the ground and recognising how much work he still has to do.”

In recent months, elite European teams like Bayern Munich, Chelsea, and Liverpool have shown interest in signing Rigg. But in order to get first-team experience, the player made the decision to stay in Sunderland.

The belief held by Rigg’s camp is that playing football for the first team is preferable to moving from the North East just to play under-21s and possibly stagnate. Tuesday night at the Stadium of Light, Rigg received his first senior start for the team against Leicester City in the Championship.

Dodd responded, “I don’t know who is interested and who isn’t interested when it comes to the whole transfer thing,” when questioned about other teams expressing a desire to sign the 16-year-old and whether Sunderland would need to use Rigg in order to pay him long-term.

“To be honest, I don’t really understand anything there, but whether it’s Chris Rigg or someone else, when you have strong players, there will always be interest. There’s always interest, but I’m not going to choose a team just because we have to play a certain style because if we don’t, he’s going somewhere else.

“Sunderland is likely one of the most alluring teams in the nation for young football players because of their daring and willingness to play younger players. Thus, if you’re Chris Rigg, everything will work itself out since you’re in the right place at the right moment. It will be up to him to decide whether to quit the club; if he decides to stay, that is fantastic.

“But, if you’re a young footballer and Sunderland want to sign you, then I think you would be mad not to sign for the football club because they put so much trust and faith in young footballers,” Dodds said.

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