Keith Andrews admits ‘surprise’ at Sunderland flop Jack Rodwell wanting to play at centre-back

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Former Sunderland midfielder Jack Rodwell started for Blackburn Rovers against Middlesbrough in the Championship on Sunday.

Sky pundit Keith Andrews has admitted that he was left ‘surprised’ that Blackburn Rovers defender Jack Rodwell wanted to be a centre-back as he stated that the Sunderland flop has had a ‘tough ride’ in recent times.

As reported by BBC Sport, the 27-year-old had his contract at the Stadium of Light cancelled last summer after making only two league appearances for the club as they were relegated from the Championship into League One.

From then, he joined Tony Mowbray at Blackburn Rovers where he has been playing at the heart of the club’s defence for large parts of the season.

Nonetheless, former West Brom midfielder Andrews shared his thoughts on Rodwell and claimed that he ‘never’ doubted his abilities as a footballer.

“He’s had a tough ride,” Andrews told Sky Sports Football on 17/02/2019. “At Sunderland, it didn’t go particularly well that is pretty well documented. You can never doubt this fella’s attributes & quality. Injuries have curtailed him to a degree.

“One of the first things Jack Rodwell said to him [Simon Grayson] was I’m a centre-half, which surprised me. There is no doubt in possession, him and Mulgrew very good, stepping out and making the right passes.

“Overall this season, he has done very well and he is still only 27.”

Rodwell suffered back-to-back relegation with Sunderland as he will no doubt go down in the club’s history as one of their worst ever players.

Nonetheless, he has since been playing at Ewood Park and he started for Rovers during their 1-0 defeat against Middlesbrough on Sunday afternoon – he was substituted at half-time by his manager.

Over the course of the season, the former Premier League midfielder has played 15 league matches, the majority of them at centre-back, helping his team secure four clean sheets along the way, according to transfermarkt.

There could be the real possibility that Rodwell comes up against the Black Cats next season as they are currently vying for promotion back to the second tier of English football.