Sunderland manager Gus Poyet has hailed the improvements that Connor Wickham has made to his game.

The 21-year-old penned a new deal with the club earlier this week that has extended his stay at Stadium of Light to 2019.

He initially struggled at the Black Cats and was sent out on loan to Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds United, but a strong end to the last season has seen him become one of the first names on the team sheet for Poyet.

"He wants to play in the middle and he will sooner or later, because he's a number nine," The Mirror quotes Poyet as saying. "Then we tried him on the left this season, I liked what I saw and he's got better there.

"I forget sometimes he's 21. You think he's 24. He's more mature, he knows his game better and what he can do for us. He keeps improving and there's more to come, I'm sure there's more. If he's in the middle, it's easier for him.

"There are not too many young English players with that power. People who worked with him at England U21, they'd be surprised if they got the chance to see him again now."

Wickham has scored three goals for Sunderland this season.