WHEN Sunderland travelled to Watford for their final game before the start of the international break, Tony Mowbray’s team pretty much picked itself. Now, with the domestic action set to return after a two-week hiatus, things are not quite so simple. And with some key players set to return over the course of the next few weeks, they are about to get even more complicated.

The most immediate selection dilemma facing Mowbray will rear its head ahead of Saturday’s home game with Preston, with Dennis Cirkin having returned to action during the international break.

Cirkin is one of Sunderland’s most exciting youngsters, and had been in fine form prior to picking up an injury in the Tees-Wear derby defeat at Middlesbrough, with his display in last month’s win at Stoke remaining one of the stand-out individual displays of the season so far.

He can play in a back three or a back four, so should be fine with whatever defensive formation Mowbray opts to go with this weekend, but in his absence, Aji Alese has stepped up to produce two excellent defensive displays against Reading and Watford that marked him out as an equally-exciting prospect.

Mowbray will almost certainly want to get Cirkin back into his starting side, but what message does it send out to Alese if he drops him straight back to the bench despite the quality of his efforts in the last two matches? A tough call – and one that the rest of the Sunderland squad might interpret as an early indication of whether Mowbray’s team selections will primarily be influenced by pecking order or form.

Ross Stewart will not be available to start against Preston, but Ellis Simms might be, and both players should be back in the squad before the end of next month.

Under Alex Neil, the pair were nailed-on starters, with the former Sunderland boss assembling the rest of his side around his twin strike-force. Mowbray started his reign with the same approach, but things changed when Stewart’s thigh muscle popped in the warm-up at the Riverside, and the tactical template was ripped up entirely when Simms hobbled off at Reading.

Mowbray had to be creative against the Royals, but his decision to field Alex Pritchard as a ‘false nine’ with Patrick Roberts and Jack Clarke playing on either side of him proved a masterstroke, with Sunderland sweeping to a 3-0 win before causing further attacking problems when the rejigged system was retained at Watford.

If Stewart and Simms both start, then it is hard to see how Pritchard, Roberts and Clarke can also all play. Roberts was the one to make way under Neil, but Mowbray clearly rates him extremely highly and his performances in the last two games have been superb.

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Stewart and Simms scored eight goals between them in the opening seven matches, something that should not be overlooked. Collectively, though, it can be argued that Sunderland have looked more threatening, and certainly less predictable, in their absence. Hence, Mowbray has a decision to make when they return.

He must also decide how, and when, to start gradually introducing August’s deadline-week arrivals in the starting side. Jewison Bennette served notice of his talent at Watford, and scored twice while on international duty with Costa Rica this week, while Amad Diallo has also shown enough in his three appearances from the substitutes’ bench to suggest he has plenty to offer if afforded an extended run in the team.

Edouard Michut is still bedding in, but presumably the midfielder did not agree to join Sunderland from Paris St Germain to sit on the bench for weeks on end.

Adopting the age-old managerial mantra, Mowbray will no doubt claim they are good problems to have. That is true – but only if you come up with the right solution.