Ross Stewart feels Sunderland is the right club for him, according to Tony Mowbray. And the Black Cats boss believes Stewart's goals can power Sunderland back towards the Premier League in the years ahead.
Stewart scored 26 goals goals last term as the Wearsiders won promotion from League One, and he had scored five goals in seven games in the Championship before suffering a thigh injury at the beginning of September. The Scot's goals have alerted other clubs in England and in Scotland but he is under contract for the remainder of this season, with Sunderland having the option to extend his stay for a further year, and earlier this month sporting director Kristjaan Speakman confirmed that discussions over a new deal have been taking place since the Spring.
Mowbray has also spoken to Stewart and he feels the 26-year-old is happy at Sunderland. "Ross is good," said Mowbray.
READ MORE: Shortening Sunderland's World Cup break was the right thing to do, says Tony Mowbray
"I've had a couple of long chats with him. He's a lovely lad, a lovely professional footballer, who is articulate, bright, clever - he's a nice kid.
"As I said when I first came in, I try to catch every player in my office for 15-20 minutes for a cup of tea and a chat about their life, their relationship status, have they got a dog, just what is their life like, really. It's important and I want them to know that I'll invest in them and if I can ever help them, if they have issues, then I will do that.
"I think he feels he is in the right place for his career. I talked about the vehicle - if he's going to score goals at the ratio he has been, is this the right vehicle for him as a showcase?
"I think he believes it is, and which other stadium in this league has got 40,000 fans hero-worshipping you if you keep on banging the goals in? It's a fantastic place for him to be, and hopefully he can help this club progress to the Premier League over the coming years.
"If not, he's talented and if he keeps on banging in goals, the phone will ring from the Premier League for him. Let's see how that moves forward, but he's a good kid and he's very much on board with the club."
Stewart's thigh injury was expected to sideline him for at least six weeks, meaning he would not return until mid-October at the earliest. But it is more likely that it will be November before he is approaching full fitness - and, with the season pausing for a break while the World Cup is on in Qatar, Sunderland may decide to give him the extra three weeks to recover rather than try to hurry him back in early November.
Asked whether Stewart could be back before the World Cup break, Mowbray said: "I don't know. I think he'll be on the grass before then, but it's a case of how quickly we feel he can get up to speed and how quickly he feels [up to speed] in himself.
"What you wouldn't want to do is rush him back to play in one game before the World Cup break when you could give him the extra three weeks and make sure he is fully ready and up to speed going into the Millwall game after that.
"I don't know, we'll see. But we're looking forward to getting him back."
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