Sunderland winger Timur Tutierov says Exeter City’s relegation battle taught him what it takes to keep his place in a senior squad.
He scored in his first two appearances for the Grecians, but what stayed with him was what happened in training when the results turned.
What changed when Exeter stopped winning
Tutierov came off the bench to score in stoppage time against Stevenage on his debut in January and did it again in the next game at Port Vale. It was a strong start for a winger playing his first senior minutes in England, but Exeter won only once in their final 20 league games and dropped into League Two. Tutierov also scored against Stockport County and ended the loan with three goals in 17 league appearances.
Speaking to the Sunderland Echo, Tutierov recalled how the pressure of a relegation fight shaped the working week. He felt the difference on the training pitch.
“Last season I was relegated with Exeter, and we were fighting to stay in the league, and this experience gave me a lot because that’s a different environment where you have to give your all every training session.
“There is no training session where you say, ‘Okay, we can run around and do things that we want to do.’”
Exeter had taken 13 points from five games to climb to 10th after winning at Port Vale. Tutierov reflected on what it took to stay in the squad once that run ended.
“I think I am exactly the same person, but I have become wiser over the year after this experience. But it has definitely shown me because when I played in the under-21s, we had lots of conversations with coaches about switching to play men’s football, which it was in Exeter. But again, I came into the team when they had great momentum, and they were winning, but that quickly changed, and that was a realisation: I have to do certain things every time to be in the squad.”
From Sunderland’s academy to the Europa League
Tutierov joined Sunderland from Kolos Kovalivka in 2023 after progressing to the first-team squad in Ukraine. He represented his country at under-19 and under-21 level while developing in Sunderland’s academy. Before the Exeter loan, he had made the bench for four Premier League fixtures without playing a competitive game for the Black Cats.
Tutierov scored against Liverpool in a pre-season friendly in Nashville in July after returning from his loan. He has since made his Premier League debut and scored his first senior Sunderland goal. The 21-year-old headed in the opener in October’s 1-1 Europa League draw at Lech Poznań, less than six months after Exeter’s League One campaign ended.
Tutierov started up front in Poland, where head coach Régis Le Bris praised his work rate, his movement in behind and how well he worked with his teammates. Those are the standards Tutierov is trying to meet as he earns more chances at Sunderland.
