After welcoming Leo Hjelde from Leeds United already this month, Sunderland are reportedly set to complete their next deal of the January transfer window to sign a former Tottenham Hotspur winger.
Sunderland transfer news
After putting pen to paper on a four-and-a-half year deal for an undisclosed fee, Hjelde said: “I’m a ball-playing centre-back, or left-back. I like to get up and down the pitch.
“I’ve been at some big clubs previously and this has helped me develop as a player and as a person, but I’m now ready to push on and take the next step. I spoke to my dad, who showed me the size of the club and the support. I knew it was a move I simply couldn’t turn down.”
Sunderland sporting director Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman added on the Sunderland website: “We’re really pleased to have acquired Leo on a permanent basis, as he’s a player we’ve admired for some time.
He possesses the ability to play three different positions in our backline, depending on the formation, and he joins us having already experienced the EFL Championship. We hope this will allow him to hit the ground running and help our team throughout the next 16 games, whilst also bringing added strength our squad in the long term.”
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Michael Beale is quickly getting his first opportunity to put his own stamp on this Sunderland side.
The Black Cats aren’t done there, however, with their business taking place at the end of the January transfer window. According to Fabrizio Romano, Sunderland are set to complete a deal to sign Romaine Mundle from Standard Liege. The winger is reportedly in England ahead of a medical and contract signing, as Romano revealed on X.
About to welcome his second signing, Michael Beale will now hope to have Mundle available for Sunderland’s next Championship game against fellow play-off chasers Middlesbrough on Sunday, February 4.
“Quality” Mundle set to replace Pritchard
Whilst Mundle arrives, Alex Pritchard is set to sign for Birmingham City, according to Sky Sports in a case of out with the old and in with the new at The Stadium of Light. Mundle’s stats certainly show that he’d offer something different on the ball than the less direct Pritchard. Here’s how they’ve compared so far this season:
Stats | Romaine Mundle | Alex Pritchard |
|---|---|---|
Progressive Carries per 90 | 3.53 | 2.64 |
Progressive Passes per 90 | 4.12 | 6.80 |
Take-ons Completed per 90 | 2.35 | 0.72 |
Fouls Drawn per 90 | 3.50 | 1.84 |
Ahead of his arrival, Josh Bunting has had nothing but good things to say about the former Tottenham academy player, posting on X: “Romaine Mundle has bags of talent, that is a very good bit of business and as much as Speakman gets criticised the signings have in large been excellent. There’s real quality here and the fact he’s been playing first team football this season is a major positive.”
