Sunderland on verge of signing Armand Laurienté from Sassuolo
According to Le Parisien, Sunderland are on the verge of completing a deal for Sassuolo forward Armand Laurienté (26), who is expected to make the move to the Premier League in the coming hours.
Laurienté was instrumental in Sassuolo’s immediate return to Serie A, scoring 19 goals and providing 6 assists in the Italian second tier last season. His performances earned him the title of Best Player in Serie B, and put him back on the radar of clubs across Europe.
A move to Sunderland would see the French winger reunite with his former manager Régis Le Bris, who took charge of the Black Cats last season, and ex-Lorient teammate Enzo Le Fée, who joined the English side on a permanent deal after a loan spell.
Laurienté joined Sassuolo from Lorient in the summer of 2022 and has since made 84 appearances for the Neroverdi. Under sporting director Florent Ghisolfi, Sunderland have had an aggressive start to the transfer window, already securing deals for Habib Diarra, Noah Sadiki, Simon Adingra, Chemsdine Talbi, and Reinildo Mandava.
A full agreement between Sunderland and Sassuolo is now reportedly close, and the transfer could be finalised swiftly.
Bayer Leverkusen’s Sporting Managing Director, Simon Rolfes, has outlined the club’s desire to retain the services of reported Sunderland transfer target Granit Xhaka this summer.
The Black Cats have been heavily linked with an ambitious swoop for the 32-year-old in recent days, and according to German outlet Bild, have even gone as far as to submit an official bid for his signature.
While the publication stop short of detailing exactly how much Sunderland offered for the player, it is understood that the fee was some way beneath the £17.3 million that Leverkusen are demanding for the Swiss international.
What has Simon Rolfes said about Granit Xhaka’s transfer future amid ongoing Sunderland links?
As quoted by Bild, he said: “Granit is a very important player for us – for the team and for the club. Our main interest is to keep him. Sure, there is interest in him, we need to talk to the player to find out what his ambitions are. But one thing is clear: a transfer would only happen if it was a win-win situation.”
He added: “We still have three years left on the player’s contract and are very happy with him. We have big goals for the next few years. Therefore, a transfer can only take place if it’s good for all parties. We’ll have to wait and see. But our goal is for Granit to stay with us.”
