Sunderland are now one of three Premier League sides in the race to sign a Scottish Premiership star, who could cost more than £25m this summer.
Sunderland battling to sign wantaway star
Gone are the days of Wembley woes and dramatic Netflix series. Sunderland are club with European football to offer these days and they’re set to flex their new status in the summer transfer market,
The Black Cats already made a statement when they signed the likes of Brian Brobbey and Granit Xhaka this time last year, and that was before an excellent first season back in the Premier League.
Now, after qualifying for the Europa League, those in Wearside have reportedly set their sights on an in-demand midfielder.
According to Sky Sports’ Lyall Thomas, Sunderland have stormed into the race to sign Arne Engels from Celtic, joining Nottingham Forest and Fulham in what could be a hectic battle between Premier League rivals.
Forest, of course, saw their £25m offer for the midfielder rejected back in January and that was the first indication of just how much Celtic are looking for.
Our sister site Give Me Sport report that the Belgian is looking to leave, but it seems likely that the Scottish giants will stick to their asking price of more than £25m to potentially spark a bidding war between Sunderland, Forest and Fulham.
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Sunderland should push to sign £25m+ Engels
The deal won’t come cheap, but that shouldn’t stop Sunderland signing Engels fresh from European qualification. The Celtic star could become the perfect heir to Xhaka’s midfield throne in Wearside and help Regis Le Bris‘ side keep hold of their Europa League status next season.
|
League stats 25/26 |
Xhaka |
Engels |
|---|---|---|
|
Minutes |
2,903 |
2,010 |
|
Goals |
1 |
5 |
|
Chances created |
34 |
42 |
|
Tackles |
50 |
30 |
|
Recoveries |
179 |
61 |
Dubbed “outstanding” by former Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers, Engles doesn’t offer the same protection as Xhaka out of possession, but he does offer a bigger goalscoring threat.
It’s something that could prove invaluable for Sunderland when fixtures begin to come thick and fast next season. Whether they choose to match Celtic’s asking price and sign the 22-year-old remains to be seen, however.
No matter what in the coming months, it looks as though Engels is destined to arrive in the Premier League and leave Scotland behind.
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