JACK ROSS has challenged Elliot Embleton to use tonight’s Carabao Cup first-round game with Sheffield Wednesday to stake a claim for an extended spell in Sunderland’s first-team squad.

Embleton shot to national prominence earlier this week when he was one of 11 players shortlisted for UEFA’s Goal of the Season award thanks to a curled effort for England Under-19s in a European Championships qualifying game against Turkey.

The 19-year-old midfielder spent the summer representing England’s youngsters in Finland, but while he has carved out a considerable reputation at international level, he is yet to make his first Sunderland start.

His three senior appearances last season all came off the substitutes’ bench, but with Jack Ross set to ring the changes for tonight’s League Cup encounter, he will be one of a number of youngsters promoted to the starting line-up.

As things stand, the Durham-born teenager has been lined up for a possible loan move before the end of the month with Sunderland boasting a number of options at the heart of midfield.

However, Ross’ plans are not set in stone, and the Black Cats boss is hoping Embleton provides him with a reason to keep him on Wearside when he lines up at the Stadium of Light.

“He’s a good player who’s got good quality,” said Ross. “But he’s one that falls into the bracket where he’s of an age now that, for his development, he needs to be playing week in, week out. If he can do that, I think he’ll develop into a player of undoubted quality.

“I’ve had a couple of good conversations with Elliot, and I think he understands how strong we are in midfield. Because he’s got international pedigree and because of the quality he’s shown, he’s not shy in terms of believing in himself. That’s why he understands I think that for his own development, it’s (a loan move) something worth looking at.

“But things can change quickly in that respect. He’ll hopefully be involved (tonight) and hopefully it gives him a platform. Sometimes, players can change your mind very quickly. I think he’s a good player, it’s just that we’ve got a number of good players in that area of the pitch at the moment.”

As well as starting with Embleton, Ross is also set to turn to the likes of Denver Hume and Luke Molyneux tonight as he looks to protect some of his more senior players ahead of a hectic week that will see Sunderland tackle league games against Scunthorpe, Gillingham and AFC Wimbledon in the space of six days.

Molyneux is set to lead the line as Ross rests Josh Maja, and the Sunderland boss accepts he could have some difficult decisions to make with regard to his youngsters in the next couple of weeks.

At the moment, he is having to turn to players who did not really feature in the first team prior to the start of the season, but by the time a number of his injury victims return, he could find himself shuffling the same players back to the Under-23s.

That could be detrimental to their development, with Ross admitting the likes of Hume and Molyneux need regular competitive action to accelerate their progress.

“When we have everybody fit and healthy, and hopefully that will be the case towards the end of the month, we’ll assess it then,” he said. “I think there are a couple of them who, if they’re not going to feature regularly enough, whether that’s starting or coming off the bench, at this stage it would be best for them to get first-team experience.

“The conversations I’ve had with them, I think they agree. It’s just a bit unfortunate at the moment that because of where we are with injuries, we can’t make decisions as yet. But because of the nature of the injuries, I think by the end of the month, we should have the bulk of those players back.

“It would certainly help some of the younger players, at least for four or five months, to get that experience. Other clubs are understanding of that because they know the number of players we’ve got out at the moment.

“If you look at our substitutes’ bench on a weekly basis, Saturday in particular, there were a lot of young players on the bench. I’m not saying they don’t merit that position, but I don’t want them to get caught in a situation where they sit on my bench and don’t get game time.

“The stage they’re at, for their own development, they need to be playing competitive football. The good thing is I think they’re in agreement with that, which helps.”

While Ross will ring the changes tonight, he does not want to downplay the importance of his first cup outing as Sunderland boss.

Sheffield Wednesday will start as favourites despite picking up just one point from their opening two Championship matches, but Ross is confident his reshuffled line-up will be capable of springing a surprise.

“I’m still really gauging the standard of the teams in the Championship,” said Ross. “But the good thing for me is that I’ve got a number of players who have played in that league and have the quality to play in that league too.

“We’re in the middle of a busy schedule. Wednesday will make changes, and we’ll have to assess our squad because we’re light as well, but the attractiveness of the tie is obvious with the opposition, and the fact it’s being shown live on television adds to it as well. There’s a balancing act for me to make as a manager, but I’m sure the game will not be flat.”