Sunderland may be wishing things had worked out differently for one Ukraine star they nearly signed, as he’s been in impressive form since.
Regis Le Bris has put together an impressive squad at Sunderland in a short space of time, with a mix of exciting young players and experienced heads.
The Sunderland manager has made it clear that developing young players is his priority before dipping into the transfer market, but he may want to reconsider that.
Turns out, the Black Cats had the chance to sign a strong Ukrainian defender back in 2022, but the move fell through.
Roman Didyk move to Sunderland spoiled by injury issue
At least, that’s the working assumption from Mykhailo Spivakovskyi, who discussed Roman Didyk’s situation on Ta To Take, and explained why the proposed switch to the Stadium of Light didn’t happen.
He said; “According to my information, Roman Didyk is the only Rukh player who was on trial in England. In 2022, he went to Sunderland and made a good impression there.
“Then he had an injury that prevented him from training fully, and that’s why the potential transfer didn’t take place.”
The Sunderland manager at the time was likely to be Alex Neil, who was appointed in February of 2022. That’s assuming Didyk went on trial at Sunderland that summer.
Sunderland should take another look at Roman Didyk after recent form
Since that deal fell through, Didyk has been a near-ever present for his club, Rukh Lviv, over the last three seasons.
The 22-year-old centre-back missed just three games last season, two of which were due to suspension. And now, this season, Didyk has played the full 90 in all but two of his appearances, and has again missed just one game due to picking up too many bookings.
| Statistics | Roman Didyk 2024/25 |
|---|---|
| Appearances | 14 |
| Minutes played | 1,213 |
| Goals | 1 |
| Assists | 2 |
| Clean sheets | 8 |
He has even captained Rukh on a couple of occasions, and is developing into one of the most promising young Ukrainian players around right now.
Surely, it will not be long before he makes his breakthrough with the men’s national team, and it would not be surprising to see another English club go in for him soon. Perhaps Sunderland will revive their interest after seeing how far Didyk has come in the last two years.
Chris Mepham and Dan Ballard had better watch their backs, it seems.