Sunderland’s shortlist for a new striker may just have shortened ahead of tomorrow’s deadline.
Sunderland have been desperate to bring in a new No. 9 this summer and have taken it right down to the wire to finally bring in that Ross Stewart replacement the fans have been waiting for.
It does look very likely to happen given the number of targets the Black Cats have, having already bid for two players.
Sunderland have long been interested in Caen’s Alexandre Mendy but are yet to meet their valuation, while the player himself has made it clear on multiple occasions how much he wants to move to Wearside.
The Championship club have also bid £5 million for Tom Cannon in recent days, while they remain in talks over an ambitious move for RB Salzburg forward Roko Simic.
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Sunderland target will now stay at his current club
So it appeared like Sunderland have a number of options to sign before tomorrow night, however it now appears three have become two.
Despite demanding a move to Sunderland, Ouest France have now reported that Mendy will stay with Caen.
The French outfit had refused to sell the 30-year-old for a minimal fee, but he had made it very clear that he wanted to move to England this week. However, it now seems like he has had a change of heart.
The report claims Caen and Mendy have now found ‘common ground’ and the club have managed to persuade him to stay for a further season.
The attacker is expected to train with Caen today and will be included in the match-day squad to host Annency tomorrow evening.
The Black Cats’ other targets are much more promising
Mendy had always looked like he could be a very solid signing for Sunderland, having been Ligue 2’s top scorer last term.
His desire to move to Wearside was also very admirable and made him a promising target.
However, given the calibre of the Black Cats’ targets elsewhere, it isn’t the end of the world.
Sunderland did want to bring experience in and Mendy would have done that, but spending upwards of £4m on a 30-year-old may not have been worth it in the long-term.
Instead, splashing seven figures on 21-year-old Cannon or 20-year-old Simic could be a lot more beneficial.
Supporters won’t be too phased by Mendy’s withdrawal if they can still nail down one of their two other targets, but time is running out and fans will start to get twitchy if no progress is publicised.