Sunderland have made an initial £13m bid to sign a “goal machine”, with those at the Stadium of Light wanting a transfer done as soon as possible.
Le Bris makes Sunderland transfer comments after Hearts defeat
Regis Le Bris and his new-look Sunderland side suffered a 3-0 pre-season defeat in Scotland against Hearts on Saturday. New big-money signings Noah Sadiki, Chemsdine Talbi, Simon Adingra and Habib Diarra all featured at Tynecastle, with the new Premier League season just around the corner.
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Talking after the loss to Hearts, Le Bris spoke to the media and was asked for the latest on potential signings following rumours of a move to sign Granit Xhaka. The manager admitted the club “have to reinforce this squad to be stronger” and described the window as “unpredictable”.
“All I can say right now is that we are trying our best to improve the team. We will have to see what happens. If you look at the Hearts game, then it looks as though we are far away from where we need to be. That is clear. But at the same time, it is always a work in progress. Maybe you get a confidence against a certain type of team or a certain style of play, but then later, if you don’t play with the right level of intensity, you can be surprised, and I think the game against Hearts was part of that process. So it was useful. Tough, but useful.
“Then, when it comes to where the squad is at, we will see. It is still unpredictable, so we always have to manage the players we have and be confident with them. But at the same time, we are not naive and we know we have to reinforce this squad to be stronger.”
A new centre-forward to rival Eliezer Mayenda and Wilson Isidor appears to be on the to-do list, with Real Madrid forward Gonzalo Garcia of interest. Now, a new update has emerged regarding a deal with those at the Bernabeu.
Sunderland make £13m bid to sign Gonzalo Garcia
According to reports in Spain, Sunderland have now submitted an offer to sign Garcia from Real Madrid worth an initial €15m (£13m).
The total package includes another €5m (£4.3m) in add-ons and a 30% sell-on clause, with the Black Cats wanting ‘to close the deal quickly’. Alongside the bid, Sunderland are also giving Real Madrid the chance to re-sign Garcia for €30m between now and 2027, should the Spanish giants give the green light to the proposal.
Garcia recently starred at the Club World Cup, scoring four goals and providing one assist in six games for Real in the USA, being dubbed a “goal machine” in “monstrous” form in the media.
The 21-year-old is capable of playing anywhere across the front three and has broken through into Madrid’s first team after starring for Real Castilla.
A move looks like it could be one to keep an eye on following Sunderland’s bid, especially with the buy-back clause, sell-on clause and add-ons.