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Sunderland transfer roundup - Everything you might have missed

Sunderland transfer roundup - Everything you might have missed

Ed Brown
Ed Brown
AUG 16, 2025

Sunderland have had the most active summer transfer window in recent memory, smashing the record for money spent as a promoted club, so it’s plausible there are some moves you may have missed over the summer!

Fear not, as I will cover every transfer move made this window by Regis Le Bris, Kristjaan Speakman, and Florent Ghisolfi in the Sunderland front office in chronological order, to keep you up to speed before the Premier League season kicks off for the Black Cats.

Enzo Le Fée - Attacking Midfielder - £19.8 Million from AS Roma

Enzo Le Fée signed for Sunderland on a loan-to-buy deal during the January transfer window of 2024, with the buy clause activated if Sunderland were promoted to the Premier League. Of course, that came to pass, making Le Fée the first signing of the window for the Mackems.

The 25-year-old Frenchman is at home in the middle of the park as a progressive and creative centre midfielder.

Enzo Le Fée (Mike Egerton/PA)

Habib Diarra - Centre Midfielder - £27.2 Million from RC Strasbourg

Habib Diarra commanded the largest transfer fee in Sunderland history, finally toppling the wretched Didier Ndong transfer. The 21-year-old Senegalese plays central midfield and will pull the strings for the Mackems from the outset.

Noah Sadiki – Centre Midfielder - £14.7 Million from Union Saint-Gilloise

Noah Sadiki is more of a defensive midfielder than Diarra, and looked like his ideal partner in a double pivot until a later signing bumped him down to the bench, most likely—still, a solid pickup.

Reinildo Mandava – Left Back - Free Transfer

The first true sign of intent from the Mackems was when they picked up a proper player with continental experience, in Reinildo Mandava. The former Atletico Madrid defender has notched up 19 appearances in the Champions League across his career.

Chemsdine Talbi - Winger - £17.3 Million from Club Brugge

Another player with a continental pedigree, Chemsdine Talbi starred for Club Brugge in last year's Champions League, even racking up a Man of the Match award in the newly founded league stage. A direct, driving winger with plenty of goals in him from either flank.

Chemsdine Talbi (PA Wire via Belga)

Simon Adingra – Winger - £21.1 Million from Brighton and Hove Albion

This move was big enough to make even the most casual of football fans lean forward in their chair, and perhaps spit out their morning coffee. The undoubted signing of the window, up to this point, is Simon Adingra. The left winger appeared 22 times for Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League last season.

Granit Xhaka - Centre Midfielder - £13 Million from Bayer Leverkusen

If the Adingra signing made fans spit their coffee out, this signing one-upped that, and then some. Granit Xhaka. No statistics or numbers could underline the importance and significance of this signing. His resume jumps off the page: captained Arsenal, captained Bayer Leverkusen to an invincible Bundesliga title, and still captains the Swiss national team. Now, he captains Sunderland. As a Sunderland fan, this was the signing that made you pinch yourself to check it was all real. It is real.

Granit Xhaka (Bradley Collyer/PA)

Robin Roefs – Goalkeeper - £9.1 Million from NEC Nijmegen

A signing to plug a big hole in the starting XI, Robin Roefs will replace Anthony Patterson in the net for the Wearsiders. Roefs played all 32 Eredivisie games for NEC Nijmegen last season, collected an impressive 10 clean sheets.

Marc Guiu - Striker - Loan from Chelsea

A reinforcement to the strike force, Marc Guiu arrived on loan from World Champions, Chelsea. Guiu played 12 games for Chelsea last season, scoring all six of his goals in the winning UEFA Europa Conference League bid. Guiu will look to compete for the starting striker role alongside fellow Spaniard Eliezer Mayenda and Wilson Isidor.

Marc Guiu (Zac Goodwin/PA)

Arthur Masuaku - Left Back - Free Transfer

Another full-back depth piece, Arthur Masuaku signed on a free transfer after his Besiktas contract expired over the summer. Masuaku has Premier League pedigree, playing a squad role for West Ham United for a number of seasons, and will look to bring that experience to a young squad, jostling with Reinildo and Dennis Cirkin for the starting left-back spot.

Omar Alderete - Centre Back - £10 Million from Getafe

The final confirmed signing before the start of the Premier League campaign, with more to come later, Omar Alderete was a much-needed pickup for the Mackems. After Chris Mepham's loan ended, and with Luke O'Nien still recovering from his shoulder injury in the Championship Playoff Final, centre-back became a glaring need. Alderete was in the La Liga Team of the Season for 2024/25, starring for Getafe, so this seems a great value pick-up.

Summary

And that's all the signings to date! More will undoubtedly follow in the coming weeks to further solidify the squad. Welcome back to the Premier League, Mackems!

All transfer details from transfermarkt.com, with fees converted into £s.

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