Sunderland aren’t huge spenders under Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, and certainly so in terms of wages with the club’s highest-earner being Dan Ballard at a reported £25,000-a-week.
Sunderland were once quite big spenders in the Premier League. Nowadays, that’s not the case. Kyril Louis-Dreyfus has steadied the ship since he became the majority shareholder in 2022, with Sunderland much more methodical with their spending.
Per Capology, Dan Ballard is the club’s current highest-earner, bringing in £25,000-a-week. Whilst still a huge amount of money, it’s nothing compared what the likes of Leeds United, Burnley or Sheffield United pay some of their players.
Though Enzo Le Fee arriving at Sunderland certainly goes against the club’s wage policy. It’s reported that Le Fee to Sunderland is a done deal as fans eagerly await an official announcement from the club.
Fabrizio Romano all but confirmed the move on Wednesday night. Now, the Italian journalist has shed some light on the deal, and whether or not Sunderland will be paying his Roma salary.
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Sunderland set to cover Enzo Le Fee’s Roma wages
Roma paid £19million to sign Le Fee from Rennes last summer. Although he’s been something of a flop since, featuring just six times in Serie A and now leaving for the Championship, he’s still on a huge salary.
Capology put Le Fee’s weekly wage at Roma at a staggering €82,000-a-week (£69,000-a-week), which is of well out of Sunderland’s price range. But it looks like Louis-Dreyfus is making an exception for Elvedi.
Romano posted: “Enzo Le Fee travels to England later today for medical tests at Sunderland, as #SAFC will cover full salary until June.”
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The exact fee that Sunderland would have to pay for Enzo Le Fee
Given that Roma paid £19million for Le Fee just a few months ago, it’d be safe to assume that Claudio Ranieri’s side would want the same amount, if not more back for the player should they sell in 2025.
Romano puts that fee at €23million. Another report from Sky Sports Italy also states that Sunderland will have to pay €23million to sign Le Fee in the event of promotion, which equates to £19.23million.
That would make Le Fee by far and away Sunderland’s most expensive ever signing. It’s certainly an exciting prospect, but first, Le Fee needs to prove that he can cut it in England, in a testing Championship division.