Nine in, twelve out. Not unusual numbers for Sunderland AFC at the end of a transfer window. Yet, this time, there is a twist – a substantial profit from the sale of Jack Clarke, around £11.5 million – the largest fee the club has been able to command for a single member of its squad since Jordan Pickford left back in 2017! A sign that maybe, just maybe, the club’s strategy is clicking firmly into place.
This, we were told, would be the moment. This was when the next phase of the club’s fabled recruitment model would be ‘unlocked.’ But cut to 11pm on deadline day, and a familiar story unfolded. For the seventh consecutive transfer window – yes, seven – Sunderland failed to secure a proven striker on a permanent deal.
Put simply, on this particular issue, that is indefensible.
Sporting Director, Kristjaan Speakman will talk of ‘good bids’ being submitted, of not being quite able to ‘get that deal over the line’ and there will be mention of ‘not finding value in the market’. In addition, we will hear how everyone within the club is ‘aligned’ and ‘really happy with the balance of the squad.’ We already know these to be the messages. On matters of centre-forwards at least, this is the same refrain heard for the last four years. There may indeed be some substance to it.
In reality though, given the financial boost from the Clarke sale – on the back of their quixotic quest for sustainability – there can be no acceptable excuse. Not this time.
Perhaps Sunderland could have pushed for a higher fee for Clarke which may have opened more doors, especially with two years left on his contract. It was not the top-market value we all thought could legitimately be demanded, despite Mike Dodds previously saying, “If anyone did want to come and take our successful players it’s going to have to be a premium.”
Bargain buy?
Some may even call it a bargain for Ipswich FC. Still, most could accept the deal – especially with a potential sell-on clause sweetening the pot – if it meant Sunderland could reinvest that money in the transfer market. Frustratingly, that did not happen. Not with the level of conviction one might have hoped for, given our understanding of how the model should now work. Although there is some recent debate around the exact figure – more on that later – the owners likely spent around £4.8m in the end, having pocketed around £12.3m in total.
If, within the world of transfers, doors previously closed to Sunderland were now pushed ajar by selling Clarke, for reasons yet to be made clear, the club chose not to step through them. Not the openings marked ‘proven striker’ at any rate.
However you frame it, without that specific role being filled, Régis Le Bris has not been given the best chance of securing promotion. Even with Eliezer Mayenda starting the season very strongly indeed (two goals, two assists). We must only cast minds back to the last few seasons to know it is a lot to ask of youngsters to maintain their levels of performance across 46 games. Inexperienced players tend to tire and drop in and out of form. This is not negativity. It is not a wild guess either. If nothing else, it is based upon what we have seen with our own eyes time and time again.
The saga that was Alexandre Mendy, plus Tom Cannon, Roko Simic, Ike Ugbo, Gift Orban and Mohamed Bamba – all names the Black Cats were reportedly linked with during the summer. The fact that sizeable bids were being made by Sunderland chiefs as late as Friday night strongly suggests they are keenly aware they have left themselves light in that position once again.
And yet, despite this glaring omission by the Sunderland recruitment team, there was also some excellent business over the summer. In fact, it is possible to both be hugely dissatisfied with one aspect of the window whilst also wholly enthusiastic with the rest.
Now the good news
Now we have got that off our chest – Sunderland brought in Wilson Isidor, a 23-year-old former French U20 international on loan from Zenit St Petersburg. A striker, no less! Sadly, just not really a proven one. Instead, Isidor remains an unknown quantity. Indeed, As Jeremy Smith, a French football expert, recently told Founded1879, “I’m not sure this is the proven striker you’re looking for.” He added, “I wouldn’t call him an out-and-out centre-forward. He can play down the middle, on the flank, or as a winger – but he’s not your traditional strong, rugged hold-up striker.” This is not to say Isidor will be ineffectual. Chances are he can add pace, trickery and goals. That would seem likely given his reputation. Crucially though, it just remains unclear whether he – and indeed Mayenda – can fill the position/profile vacated by Ross Stewart. A role which has remained noticeably empty since March 2023.
Another striker
Perhaps neither will have to. Believe it or not Sunderland signed another striker. Yes, two! So, what’s the problem you may ask? Well, 20-year-old Ahmed Abdullahi arrived on a four-year deal for £1.7 million, (a recent report suggests it could be as high as £2.5m) but his CV is thin. Very thin – 38 appearances for Gent’s development side and just two for their senior team. A project for the future, no doubt. As we saw last season with Mayenda and Luis Hemir, it’s unrealistic to expect young, inexperienced players to immediately shine in front of 40,000 fans. They need time – time they will not get without potentially sacrificing immediate results. Therefore, based on Abdullahi’s resume and from watching others with similar profiles, you may question why Speakman insists he will, “bring instant competition to our attacking line.”
However, Isidor, with more experience, might prove the doubters wrong. Yet, relying on Mayenda, Nazariy Rusyn, and Isidor as your main options up front – with Abdullahi in the mix – across a full campaign, feels like a gamble too risky for any club truly serious about promotion.
Guaranteed goals from someone who has performed consistently over their career remains the main ingredient now lacking from a squad that suggests it is statistically capable of knocking on the door of the play-offs.
Although, Sunderland did address one long-standing gap in the squad.
Finally, a defensive midfielder!
In Salis Abdul Samed, the Black Cats now have a true defensive midfielder. Hallelujah! Finally! Praise be to the football Gods! A specialist in the role no less. It has been over three years since the club signed Corry Evans, the only CDM in the group until his departure in the summer. Evans had not played a single match since January 2023. Thankfully, Samed therefore brings much-needed experience (19 caps for Ghana, six Champions League appearances alongside regularly competing at the top end of Ligue 1) and a skill-set Sunderland sorely lacking on Wearside. There is much excitement about watching him pull on the red and white for the first time.
It is just remarkable it took so long to fill the ‘Evans’ shaped hole.
With the arrival of experienced 26-year-old centre-back Chris Mepham on loan from Bournemouth, the good news does not stop there. In fact it gets better. With significant game time in both the Premier League and the Championship he is an excellent acquisition and standing at 6ft 4inches, adds a real ‘Danny Batth’ style physical presence in the heart of defence. He provides options at centre-back for Le Bris, especially with the recent news that Aji Alese will be out for 12 weeks with an ankle injury.
Midfielder, Alan Browne joining the club earlier in the window appears to be yet another experienced and versatile midfielder who has instantly looked at home in the starting XI. A great pickup on a free it must be said.
If Mapham, Browne, Samed and indeed goalkeeper Simon Moore who we have not touched on here, offer proven nous, we once again venture somewhat into the unknown with the Serbian midfielder Milan Aleksić. The £3.1m deadline day acquisition from FK Radnicki seems – from what little we know of him – raw. Yet, it is also true to say there is once again some potential there. Plenty top sides have expressed an interest. Another who seems capable of playing in various midfield positions too. Despite him playing a deep lying role on occasions he may seem better suited to a more advanced position. Indeed, some of his highlight clips (come on, we all watch them!) suggest some similarity with young Chris Rigg. Certainly there is a technical ability with an eye for a clinical pass. There is a very good and detailed thread on X by Ethan Todd from Reach Publishing if of further interest.
Ian Poveda, joining on a free is an interesting move too. He showed, in flashes for Sheffield Wednesday last season, that he is capable of – positively impacting games in this league. Poveda is returning from injury of course and looking at his recent related medical history it does not make pleasant reading. He has certainly missed a lot of game time of late. Still, if he can stay free from niggles and is managed carefully, perhaps he can add another dimension to the wide areas when asked to.
Cheers and all the best
Other than Clarke, of the remaining 11 outgoings Elliot Embleton and Corry Evans certainly deserve a mention. Both were significant contributors to the Black Cats’ journey from League One plodders to Premier League hopefuls. Embleton, a local lad, as we know had his standout moment in a Sunderland shirt on the hallowed turf of Wembley. This writer will forever remember the moment when he smashed home the opener in the League One play-off final in 2022 from distance, a goal that set the stage for a 2-0 triumph over Wycombe Wanderers and finally brought the Rokermen back to the Championship. A truly magical moment and Embleton was instrumental in it.
The following season, he was a familiar face in the lineup, clocking up 23 appearances in the second tier. But just as he was finding his stride, disaster struck – ankle ligaments torn in a bruising clash against Hull in December 2022, cutting his campaign cruelly short. Despite working hard to get back to fitness he sadly was injured again while out on loan to Derby County and never really looked likely to SR5 for long after that.
Unfortunately for Embleton, the club moved on while he was on the sidelines.
Evans unfortunately shares a similar tale of woe in respect of injuries. But nonetheless his leadership on and off the pitch was also key in helping the Black Cats return to the Championship.
We very much wish them both well.
The remaining departures do not feel like huge losses as things stand. Albeit it will be interesting to see whether the few who have left on loan – such as Hemir, Pierre Ekwah and Timothée Pembélé can return better prepared for the challenge of breaking into Sunderland’s starting XI.
Conclusion
Before we conclude the postmortem, one aspect of summer business which often gets lost within the final analysis is when a club manages to tie down existing talent to new contracts. And, so much it is perhaps the case here with Sunderland.
Dan Ballard, Jobe Bellingham and Chris Rigg inked crucial new deals over the summer to ensure some of the current stars will be here for a little while longer at least. Or if they do go, Clarke notwithstanding, they hopefully leave for a premium figure as Mike Dodds claimed.
All that aside, there is more positives to take from the window than negatives. Many more. At least five of the nine incomings have immediately strengthened the squad. Although, with a starting XI that was wholly reliant upon Jack Clarke last season it can no longer call upon his services. It is surely understandable to feel a degree of concern when such a vital individual is gone.
That said, at this moment, he is not missed as much as some might have expected. Not yet at any rate. Romaine Mundle has stepped up a gear with goals and assists. Mayenda too. And Chris Rigg looks to be different gravy! Régis Le Bris’ Sunderland side no longer seem a one trick pony as it did during the latter part of the last campaign.
Sitting top of the league after four games – albeit Clarke had a goal and an assist from two of them – is testament to that.
We have had the weekend to reflect since deadline day and the Black Cats’ transfer window can in broad terms be described as a success. There is now more depth in areas previously lacking it. And, in the event Le Bris keeps impressing as head coach, the new additions will strengthen the core of a group that only ever needed tweaks to improve in the first place.
However, it is simply impossible to judge the summer business without acknowledging that yet again there has been an unforgivable failing by not delivering that elusive proven goalscorer.
Yes, that failing is in only one area. Yet, in light of a significant sale, the cogs of the club’s model were surely meant to click around to its next crucial stage. We cannot say in all good conscience that this truly happened during the window. Not this one at any rate. Impressive talent did arrive, however. There is no question of that.
And, naturally, for many of us, how we judge this transfer window comes down to simply one thing – how Sunderland is performing on the pitch right now. The future is for another day. Thankfully, for all concerned, in this moment the Black Cats are purring.
Photo by Mark Fletcher via MI News & Sport/Alamy
