Watson spent a long spell on the sidelines during the second half of last season, during which time a move to Brighton & Hove Albion was announced. The 19-year-old initially struggled for form after returning from injury towards the end of the campaign, but made a spectacular impact as a substitute at Wembley. Watson’s winner against Sheffield United secured Sunderland’s promotion and a guaranteed financial boost of almost £200 million.
Barnes said the work the youngster had done to rebuild his strength and fitness in the latter stages of the season proved to be key and underlined is dedication to the club.
“Tommy and his family are absolutely massive Sunderland fans,” Barnes said.
“The commitment to the football club from Tommy as a fan is beyond question, and his younger brother is still in the academy. His family have season tickets, etc. We don’t know how much influence agents had in the move but when those contract talks were starting, he’ll have been weighing up his chance of breaking into the starting XI regularly and the chance he had to go to the Premier League and what that means for his wages etc. By all accounts, he has been told he will get a chance to play at Brighton next season. So I can understand the decision from a professional footballer’s point of view.
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