With Sunderland making their best start to a season in 99 years, any lingering frustration about how the transfer window turned out is quickly being forgotten.
The Black Cats travel to Wayne Rooney’s struggling Plymouth Argyle on Saturday looking to maintain a 100 per cent record which has Sunderland setting the pace at the top of the Championship table.
Regis Le Bris, the manager brought in from FC Lorient over the summer, is eking every single ounce of potential out of a young and rapidly-improving squad, with Romaine Mundle stepping up in the absence of departed talisman Jack Clarke and Eliezer Mayenda threatening to solve their centre-forward problems.
Mayenda’s impressive start to the campaign looks all the more important when you consider Sunderland missed out on one of their leading striker targets.
A deal could not be agreed with Alexandre Mendy – the Golden Boot winner in France’s second tier last season – despite the SM Caen hitman telling anyone who would listen just how desperate he was to make that move to the Stadium of Light.
Sunderland also missed out on Goduine Kouyalipou – who moved to Bulgaria with CSKA Sofia – as well as Roko Simic.
Sunderland missed out on strikers including Roko Simic
One of countless talented youngsters to rise through the Red Bull system, HITC can confirm that Sunderland held talks with Simic back in August.
Once on the radars of Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur – and likened to Juventus star Dusan Vlahovic due to his rangy frame and powerful finishing – Simic would end the window having joined a Championship outfit on a deal that could rise to £2 million.
But it was not Sunderland. Instead, Cardiff City won the race, before loaning Simic out to Belgium with KV Kortrijk.
And, speaking to Kortrijk’s official website, Simic now admits that he came within touching distance of joining Le Bris’ red-and-white ranks instead.
“Sunderland was close,” says Simic, scorer of eight goals in 20 caps for Croatia’s Under 21s. “My first club, Dinamo Zagreb, also wanted me. There was interest from Udinese and a few other clubs, but that is no longer important.
“Now, I am here. And I feel good here. I feel peace and quiet in the club and that is important to me.”
“I am a targetman but I can also drop deep. With my 80 kilogram (weight), I am strong in duels and I know that I have everything in me to be a good striker one day. This has to happen here on my path to go to an even bigger competition.”
Cardiff City signing admits Black Cats move was ‘close’
Fortunately, Sunderland have not found goals hard to come by thus far despite missing out on a number of striker targets. Only Burnley have scored as many as the Black Cats’ 10 so far.
Sunderland also have Wilson Isidor – the attacker they did get through the door from Russian giants Zenit St Petersburg – champing at the bit and ready to make his mark.
“I’m a striker who can play also on the wings,” Isidor, who worked with Le Bris in Rennes’ reserve sides, tells the Sunderland Echo.
“My main quality is that I’m fast. I finish my actions, I can shoot and dribble. I think I have some qualities and hopefully I can bring them to the team.
“I’m a player who likes to attack the space. When I have some space ,I will run into it because I know have the quality. I love to dribble, to shoot from everywhere! Because I want to score, this comes before everything.
“I can score from everywhere and I can’t wait to score my first goal.”
The post 'Sunderland was close': £2m ace admits he nearly joined Black Cats instead of Championship rivals appeared first on HITC.
from HITC https://ift.tt/dJeBbkC
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