Sunderland’s 17-year-old wonderkid Chris Rigg analyses his brilliant backheel goal
An hour after the final whistle blew on Sunderland’s 1-0 win over Middlesbrough, Chris Rigg returns to the pitch, having just decided a local derby with a piece of improvised magic: a backheel from nowhere that sent shivers down the spine of the entire stadium and the national crowd.
The net has been taken down and the Sunderland groundsmen are noisily mowing the grass behind Rigg, but the boy who turned 17 in June agrees to return to his moment of brilliance with The Athletics.
Even he seems a little surprised when he explains it to us, but such a winner is a dream, an instinct, and not the plan.
The 24th minute goal comes from Sunderland’s keeper, Anthony Patterson, and by the time his long pass is to Romaine Mundle on Sunderland’s left, Rigg is in the centre circle preparing to go forward.
“Probably just follow,” he says when asked what’s going through his mind at that moment. “Because I know when Pat gets the ball, he likes to shoot. And sometimes you get lucky. And I got lucky there. Just follow.”
Pat is Patrick Roberts, Sunderland’s left-footed right winger, who has been found by Mundle. When Roberts gets the ball, he runs at the defence and shoots, as Rigg expects.
Expectations are tempered as the ball is pushed low and into the Boro defence, but Rigg still runs.
George Edmundson sticks out a leg to block the shot and plays the ball back to goal. Goalkeeper Seny Dieng is in the wrong position and is lying on the ground. The ball is loose.
Next, as he says, Rigg is there first. What was his first touch like?
He smiles at the imperfection, then rolls both feet to show how he tried to regain control. “It takes the ball away from the ‘keeper,” Rigg says of the first touch. “It was the only thing I could have done because the ball was right in front of him, so I had to take it off him. I thought, ‘Oh no, I’ve taken it too far.'”
And then? “Then I could only do a backheel.”
That wasn’t all. The ball was heading for the goal line, the angle was narrow and it looked at best like Rigg could keep it in play. But then he produces a backheel on the run. Not many people would think of it, let alone execute it, especially someone who turned 17 three months ago and was playing against men in front of 43,000 fans.
Chris Rigg, take a BOW! 🔥 photo.twitter.com/jwCquWElwG
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) September 21, 2024
17-year-old Chris Rigg with a beautiful backheel goal for Sunderland 😱 photo.twitter.com/O1tI5cdIhP
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) September 21, 2024
“It went in, I was all excited,” he says as he watches footage of his teammates jumping on him.
“How cool is that? How cool is that?” shouts the commentator on Sky Sports.
We ask if he did that in training. Rigg laughs: “I haven’t, no, I’m not even that good in training.”
Another angle of Riggy’s heel… why not? 🎬🤩 photo.twitter.com/xYuYhC1iUL
— Sunderland AFC (@SunderlandAFC) September 22, 2024
Self-mockery takes him far, as does self-confidence. Rigg tells how he joined Sunderland at the age of five and first stood on the pitch as ‘entertainment’ at half-time with the under-nines: ‘That was incredible. I was probably more nervous then.
“It’s just so much fun to do. Even if it’s half-time and half-empty, that’s what you dream of as a boy, playing in a stadium in front of fans.”
Rigg roars with joy after his magical moment (Owen Humphreys/PA Images via Getty Images)
He made his debut at the Stadium of Light at the age of 15 in January last year, before playing in the FA Youth Cup here. He does get nervous, he says, but he doesn’t show it, and of his style he says: “I could say I’m just a traditional midfielder. I like to attack, I like to defend. I can do both. I can add something to it. And as you can see, I like tackling as well. A sort of box-to-box midfielder.”
When asked about midfielders he admires, it suddenly dawns on him that they might still be playing, Rigg is so young. And sure enough, “Modric” is the first name he mentions; plus “you look at bits of Zidane and Lampard and Gerrard”.
Then a flash of self-determination, as seen on the pitch: “I don’t want to be Steven Gerrard, I want to be Chris Rigg. But those kind of players.”
He is measured in his tone. Maintaining the balance between legitimate expectations of Rigg and knowing the harsh realities of professional football is up to the rest of us. His youth must be emphasized and re-emphasized — he will still be 17 when the season ends.
Rigg’s is the name most often mentioned in a youthful team that is developing rapidly, with scouts from all over Europe now clamoring for a place at the Stadium of Light. The average age of Saturday’s team was 23.1 and this was the fifth win in six Championship games under new summer recruit Regis Le Bris.
GALLING DEEPER
How Sunderland were revived: Fast starts, determination and the impact of ‘Arsene Who?’
There is excitement as autumn takes hold of Wearside and Rigg, who was persuaded to sign his first professional contract in July, is the teenage flag bearer for a team second in the table. Watford away is next.
“I don’t think age is a problem,” Le Bris said. “You can have a high level of maturity at 17 and a low level of maturity at 30. It depends on the personality and the players.
Le Bris’ young team have won five of their first six games (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
“Chris Rigg is a good symbol of what we want to create and build as a team and a club. He still wants to improve, he still wants to understand the game. He has this personality and character to play no matter the circumstances. I like that.”
Le Bris, however, offers no grandiose predictions about where Riggs’ career will go. The Frenchman laughs when asked if the England Under-18 captain could win senior international caps in the future.
“I hope so,” he said. “It’s the consistency. You can play one, two, three, four, five games, but the reality of the high level is to play a whole season and several seasons. He still has to develop many things, but this attitude is very interesting.”
One step – or heel – at a time.
(Top photo: Rigg twists his body to score his back heel; by Ian Horrocks/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images)
