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Jack Diamond interview: How the Sunderland loanee is shining with Lincoln City |

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It was a strange few days in August for Jack Diamond.

The Sunderland winger had agreed to move on loan again late in the transfer window under Alex Neil, but by the time he had signed for Lincoln City the Scotsman had departed the Stadium of Light.

A day later, a new manager in Tony Mowbray was through the door.

“It was a funny one!” Diamond, 23, tells Sky Sports. “We were waiting to see if the deal would go through and it was taking a couple of days, then we got the news he was leaving.

“I didn’t know who to speak to! I didn’t know if it was still going ahead, or what was happening. But it was getting to the end of the window and I didn’t want to take any more time, because otherwise I would have had to wait until January to move.

“I decided I’d rather have the situation in my own hands where I’d go out on loan, and if I didn’t play well then it was on me. But if I’d stayed there and not played it would have been difficult.”

Image:
Diamond in action for Sunderland

Diamond will be glad he did. He scored on his second appearance for Lincoln in September, and netted a hat-trick in a madcap 6-3 win at Bristol Rovers a few days later. Thus far the 23-year-old has notched eight goals in all competitions, making him the highest scorer at the club.

He is building on last season, which saw him score 13 times in 39 appearances for Harrogate Town in League Two.

“I started playing games as soon as I got here, which made it easy to bed in,” he says. “I’ve done well on the stats side as well, which is important these days, getting your goals and assists. I’m on track to do better than last season, so it’s an improvement.

“It was in my head that if I wasn’t going to be a regular starter I’d want to go out on loan. It was important for me to keep up that momentum. That was the attitude I had, I wanted to play all the time regardless of where it is.

“I had a conversation at the beginning of pre-season because [Alex Neil] had come in after I’d gone out on loan the season before, and he’d never really had the chance to see me. Then I had a decent pre-season, but it was getting to the point towards the end of the window where a few teams were asking about loans.

“I wasn’t starting, so I had a conversation with the manager over whether I’d just be there as a squad player. He said he didn’t want to not let me progress by just keeping me in case someone got injured, and I didn’t want to sit around waiting, so I knew the opportunity to go on loan would be the best thing for me.”

There was plenty of interest in his services, but Diamond opted for Lincoln due to their history of developing players who arrive at the LNER Stadium on loan, such as Brennan Johnson – the Nottingham Forest star who spent the 2020/21 season with the Imps, and now plays for them in the Premier League.

“Brennan really stands out because he’s the most recent one,” says Diamond. “It was the history of how they’ve used loans that appealed to me. It’s quite a big part of how they approach the market, and a culture they have of treating loan players well.

“It seemed a really good platform for what I wanted to do, and a good place to come and show what I’m about. It just felt like a good fit and a natural progression after spending time in the National League and in League Two. Going out on loan has been a good pathway. It’s not always as straightforward as just coming through an academy and playing.”

Diamond has been at Sunderland since he was 14, and Lincoln is his fourth loan move away from the club.

His most successful spell at the Stadium of Light so far came in the second half of the 2020/21 campaign, when he broke into the first team after impressing Lee Johnson – who had replaced Phil Parkinson midway through the season.

He made 24 appearances, 13 as a starter, and scored one goal and notched four assists as Sunderland reached the play-offs. He was used as a substitute in both semi-final legs as they were beaten – ironically – by a Lincoln side spearheaded by Brennan Johnson.

“The manager got sacked and then Lee Johnson came in and he seemed to like me straight away,” says Diamond.

“It was a big season because we got to the play-offs, so it was good to be a part of that environment. I learned a lot, although it would have been nicer if we weren’t beaten by Lincoln!”

It reflected Diamond’s desire to progress that last season he opted to move to Harrogate again rather than risk being left as a squad option at the Stadium of Light. He is desperate to play and determined to improve.

He also feels there is a lot more to come.

“I feel I’ve developed well, that I’ve matured a lot on the pitch and that I’m better at dealing with up and down spells,” he says.

“I started really well, then had a few games where I didn’t score or assist. But it’s about learning how you can affect games when you’re not always on the ball.

“I’ve got good athleticism. I’m quite direct and quick, and in the past few years my goals and assist numbers have been good.

“I like to think I’m positive. I always want to go forward, take risks with the ball and beat my man before finding a pass or a cross.

“I love exciting, direct players. The type of players everyone wants to watch, like Eden Hazard when he was at Chelsea. There are some wingers now that are just scary, the likes of Mo Salah and Sadio Mane.

“I hope to test myself in the Premier League one day. I’ve still got so long left in my career and I don’t see why I can’t get there. It’s a natural progression, I’ve just got to keep pushing myself.”

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