‘Sales are’… Sunderland fans won’t like what Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman has just said
Sunderland Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman has issued an update regarding player sales that suggest how they could approach Jobe Bellingham interest.
Sunderland are gearing up for their Championship play-off final against Sheffield United, with a return to the Premier League for the first time in eight years potentially just 90 minutes away.
Dan Ballard’s last-gasp header against Coventry City got the Black Cats over the line at the Stadium of Light, with the centre-back rising above the Sky Blues backline and nestling a brilliant header into the net, cueing pandemonium from the Sunderland faithful.
In the build up to the play-off final though, reports have circled about Jobe Bellingham’s future at Sunderland. Bellingham could move on, no matter the outcome of the play-off final, and that may have just been alluded to by Sunderland Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman, who recently gave an update on sales and how likely they are at the club.
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Kristjaan Speakman discusses the potential of Sunderland sales and why they are ‘important’
Sunderland’s upcoming transfer business, regarding incomings and departures will certainly be heavily dictated by how successful they are in the upcoming Championship play-off final; some within the ranks could be playing to stay at the club in the Premier League.
However, it could be the case that Bellingham moves on from Wearside, no matter whether Sunderland can achieve a return to the top flight.
Sunderland Sporting Director Speakman touched on the likelihood of player sales, as, speaking to BBC Newcastle, he said: “I think the sales are important. They are. They’re the by-products of the success, they’re not the focus point. We’re not trying to manufacture players to sell them, we’re trying to give players an opportunity to fulfil their dream.
“We’re trying to produce a winning team, and if you do both those things and the players are able to compete at the level, then they will have an attraction to other teams and other clubs.
“And like I’ve always said, there will be times where those players will move on and they’ll progress. We have some that progress upwards, we have some that progress sideways, we have some that progress backwards, if you like, down the league. So that’s just the environment and that’s the industry we operate in.
“But ultimately we’re about opportunity, believing in the players and trying to build a winning team. And at the minute I think we’re ticking off all those boxes.”
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Regis Le Bris will make sure one thing is spot on ahead of Championship play-off final
Sometimes, the outside noise regarding potential departures can affect the players, which is the last thing that Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris needs as his side faces a golden opportunity to return to the Premier League.
Thankfully, the spirits in the camp are high, and such talks about leaving the club have been placed on the back burner, with each individual fully focused on the task ahead.
The key difference that has helped deliver Sunderland success this season in comparison to the dire 2023/24 campaign has been the mentality shift, and that is tangible now. If the Black Cats were in this position last season, it wouldn’t be a guarantee that all players’ mindset would be focused on the game ahead.
