Romaine Mundle interview: Lessons from Antonio Conte, Standard Liege and lighting up Sunderland

New York Times

05-04-2025

Sunderland needed inspiration.
A goal down to Preston North End with four minutes to go last month, they were ambling to a home defeat that would dent their push for a spot in the Championship's end-of-season promotion play-offs. Romaine Mundle had other ideas.
It was as though time stood still: a small feint, four touches, a sway of the hips and a shift of the ball preceded a sumptuous shot which curled and dipped into the top corner. Mundle had produced something out of nothing, as he often has this season. It was the latest act of brilliance from one of the Engish second tier's most exciting wingers.
'That is an UNBELIEVABLE goal!' ✨
Romaine Mundle 👏 pic.twitter.com/Sfi8qPiUjZ
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) March 11, 2025
Mundle's senior career all began with a tackle.
It might seem surprising, given he is a skilful and creative winger who made a name for himself with Tottenham Hotspur's under-21s. But a moment of tenacity caught the eye of Spurs' head coach at the time, former Juventus and Italy midfielder Antonio Conte, and saw Mundle promoted to the first-team squad in early 2023.
'I made a strong tackle on a first-teamer, then I scored. I remember Conte mouthing to one of the coaches who was pointing at me,' the now 21-year-old says. 'After the session, one of the directors told me Conte wanted me to be with the first team full-time.'
⚡️ We've taken an early lead at The Lamex Stadium
Mundle with the goal, Donley with the assist 💪#TOTLIV // 1-0
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 26, 2022
Mundle had been given a taste of senior level with the London club before, making the bench for the first leg of a Europa Conference League play-off tie against Pacos de Ferreira of Portugal in August 2021 during Nuno Espirito Santo's brief reign and joining their training sessions sporadically.
Making the step up was a proud moment for the youngster who had been at the club since he was six; a Spurs fan who lived opposite their old stadium White Hart Lane and grew up idolising their England winger Aaron Lennon. After joining the first team, he classed Lucas Moura, Ben Davies and Eric Dier as mentors.
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'I remember going into the gym and doing all the prep, trying not to look out of place,' Mundle says. 'Then Eric told me to just follow him, do what he does. It was practising the habits that the first-team players had and trying to learn from them. He (Dier) told me to enjoy training and express myself.'
It took a while for Mundle to adapt to Conte's physically demanding training sessions. There were hard runs before and after training, and drills that were high in intensity. He remembers his body feeling 'completely destroyed' but needing to recover to go through more of the same the following day.
Another thing Mundle had to get used to at Tottenham were managerial changes.
By March 2023, Conte had departed and, like predecessor Nuno, he had left under a cloud. Mundle remains effusive about the pair, who are currently having fruitful seasons with Napoli, second in Italy's Serie A, and Nottingham Forest, third in the Premier League after battling relegation for the previous two years, respectively.
'Two good managers, two different ways of coaching,' he says. 'Training with Nuno was more fluid, but Conte was big on the tactical stuff. We knew what was expected, even the young boys. He was an amazing manager. What you see on the sidelines is him; a strong character, a lot of passion. Everything with him was intense and we had to adapt to it.'
Mundle only made the bench twice under Conte without getting onto the pitch but hoped his senior debut would come under interim manager Ryan Mason, his ex-academy coach, in the final weeks of that 2022-23 season. But with opportunities not forthcoming and his contract coming to an end, Mundle was keen to move on for first-team football, despite having a new deal at Spurs on the table.
He had offers from Reims of France's Ligue 1, Championship sides Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City, and Anderlecht. It was their fellow Belgian top-flight side Standard Liege who offered the best proposal and Mundle signed in the June.
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This path proved tumultuous, however.
The start was positive, as Mundle played as a substitute in Standard's first four league games of last season before an ankle injury curtailed his progress. There were major issues off the pitch, too, with the club struggling financially under owners 777 Partners, the U.S. investment firm whose attempts to buy Everton collapsed in June.
'The first couple of weeks I thought, 'Wow, I'm in a different country with a different style of football',' Mundle says. 'I had to be on the ball with everything: how I ate, adapting to a new culture, seeing new ways of playing. I'd gone from Spurs, where everything is done for you, to a new environment.
'(The financial situation) was tough. I used to go into training and see things, but I had to put it to the back of my mind. Any time I step on a pitch, any thoughts and problems just go away.'
By the winter transfer window, Mundle was at a crossroads again. What next for the young winger, who had only made six appearances in the Belgian top flight, none of them starts, in his debut season with Standard?
'Initially, I wanted to go out on loan,' Mundle says. 'But then Sunderland came and explained their project to me.
'I went from being at Tottenham for 15 years to being at a club for six months, so that was new for me. As soon as I'd unpacked my stuff (in Liege), I had to pack it up again and leave the country. But I was grateful for Sunderland giving me that opportunity, because in Belgium I was thinking, 'Have I wasted six months? I could be done here…' Football doesn't wait for anyone. Sunderland reignited that spark.'
The remainder of last season also had its complications.
Michael Beale, the manager who had brought Mundle to Sunderland, was sacked less than three weeks after he signed. Mundle made 11 appearances and played only nine minutes across the final six league fixtures — fellow former Spurs winger Jack Clarke, who was also key in convincing him to join the north-east club, was being picked ahead of him — as Sunderland sank to a disappointing 16th-placed finish.
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'I went away in the summer thinking, 'I need to do a lot of work here',' Mundle says. 'The first week of the off-season, I didn't speak to anyone. I had to work on myself physically, mentally, and be smarter than the men that have been playing for years: 'They may not be quicker or stronger than you, but they're smarter'. I had to improve my game.'
He did that — fast — scoring three goals in as many starts under new French head coach Regis Le Bris in August and early September.
Playing off the left in a 4-2-3-1, Mundle's bravery in attacking full-backs has earned rave reviews and he has contributed five goals and two assists in 21 Championship appearances, 16 of them starts, for a side currently fourth in the table with seven games to go. It has been a good year for Mundle's younger brother Rio, too; the 17-year-old, who plays at full-back or in midfield, signed his first professional contract at fellow Championship side Norwich City in November.
Going into this weekend's round of fixtures, Mundle's rate of 9.8 progressive carries (defined as a ball carry that moves it at least 10 yards closer to the opponent's goal) per 90 minutes was the third-highest in the Championship behind Mikey Johnston of West Bromwich Albion (11.2) and Middlesbrough's Liverpool loanee Ben Doak (10.2). Only three players in the second tier were averaging more than his 6.6 take-ons per 90.
On that flank, he has combined well with left-back and fellow Spurs academy graduate Dennis Cirkin, 22. Le Bris' team is packed with young talents, with the lowest average age in the division at 23.2. Chris Rigg, still only 17, continues to shine in midfield, while a £10million ($12m) deal has just been agreed for 18-year-old winger Tommy Watson to join the Premier League's Brighton & Hove Albion in the summer. Jobe Bellingham continues to impress, too, and has a good relationship with Mundle on and off the pitch.
There have been low times, however, such as the hamstring injury in November that kept him sidelined for three months. Or being the subject of racism on social media.
'Uneducated people… it was an opportunity for me to speak up honestly about it,' Mundle says. 'If it's brushed under the carpet, how will people learn?'
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There have been bizarre moments, too.
Last week, after winning a penalty against Millwall, Mundle was miffed when the ball was given to defender Luke O'Nien instead of being allowed to take it himself. O'Nien then had the spot kicked saved, but Mundle says the incident was a 'misunderstanding' that ultimately proved academic in a 1-0 Sunderland win.
That victory kept them fourth, nine points off the top three and 15 clear of seventh place, with the sides finishing third through sixth making the play-offs.
An away win today (Saturday) against West Brom, who are one of the many teams still eyeing the final two play-off spots, would help Mundle's belief that Sunderland can still challenge for one of the two automatic promotion spots.
'It's not a big margin; it's three wins,' he says. 'We're not going to rule ourselves out until it's over. It's about building momentum. It would be amazing to get to the Premier League. I want to do that with Sunderland.'