Sunderland got their second January signing over the line on Saturday, announcing the permanent signing of loan favourite Wilson Isidor from Zenit.
No longer is Wilson Isidor just a Sunderland loan man. He’s now a Sunderland player altogether, after the Black Cats triggered their option to buy the Frenchman early.
Sunderland have signed Isidor after the 24-year-old impressed in the first half of the season on loan from Zenit, scoring nine goals in 26 Championship outings for Regis Le Bris’ side.
He’s had his ups and downs, especially of late, but he’s been a great signing all round, and he’ll hopefully prove to be a great permanent signing too.
How much Sunderland have paid to sign Wilson Isidor
Previously, reports claimed that Sunderland had a £3.5million option to buy Isidor from Zenit. But emerging reports have now put the figure as high as €6million (£5.02million).
French outlet Sportune has uncovered the news as they report on the fact that two of Isidor’s former clubs are owed compensation: Rennes and AS Monaco.
They write that Rennes will receive around £100,000 from the move, and Monaco £75,000, as both clubs trained the player from ages 12 to 23 and in turn owed training fees.
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Where does £5m Wilson Isidor rank among Sunderland’s record transfers
Sunderland fans may remember the club’s record signing, but may not want to remember it. The Black Cats signed Didier Ndong for £13million in 2016 and he proved to be a flop.
And £5million for Isidor ranks him within the club’s top 30 most expensive signings, at the same price as names like Andy Reid and Lilian Laslandes.
But Isidor now becomes the most expensive Sunderland signing of the Kyril Louis-Dreyfus era, eclipsing the £3.5million signing of Milan Aleksic in the summer transfer window.