The 21-year-old defender won promotion with the Black Cats in 2022 and now looks set for a permanent move
The 21-year-old centre-back, who previously spent a season on loan at Sunderland, helping the club win promotion from League One in 2022, is attracting growing interest from clubs across Europe after another consistent campaign in the Championship.
Doyle made 36 appearances for the Black Cats during the 2021-22 season under Alex Neil, playing a key role in the club’s promotion campaign. Since then, he has gone on to feature regularly at Coventry City, Leicester City, and Norwich City, racking up 158 senior appearances across four separate loan spells.
A left-footed centre-half with strong ball-playing qualities, Doyle has been capped by England at Under-21 level and is understood to be open to a permanent move this summer, having yet to make a senior appearance for Manchester City.
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Hoffenheim were the first to test the waters, tabling a £6.5million offer, but City are believed to have turned it down, with the club valuing him in a similar range to other recent academy graduates who have moved on without breaking into Pep Guardiola’s first team. Udinese are also said to be monitoring the situation, while further interest is expected from the Championship and other top-tier European sides.
Doyle’s recent loan at Norwich saw him feature 40 times in the 2024-25 season, scoring once and contributing seven assists, alongside picking up 11 yellow cards in all competitions. The Mail reports that Doyle is keen to settle at a club permanently, following in the footsteps of fellow City youngster Juma Bah, who has already sealed a move to Nice this summer.
What other Sunderland transfer news is there?
According to SportItalia’s Gianluigi Longari, Sunderland are one of three English clubs showing interest in Spanish left-back Angeliño, currently on the books at AS Roma. Crystal Palace and Bournemouth are also in the mix, but neither club is reportedly willing to exceed an offer of £10.1million (€12million). However, Roma are holding out for a figure closer to £17million (€20million) – with the club under pressure to complete a major sale before June 30 to meet UEFA’s Financial Fair Play requirements.
Italian outlet Corriere dello Sport claims Sunderland may hold a slight advantage in the race for the 27-year-old due to their recent appointment of former Roma sporting director Florent Ghisolfi, who played a key role in Angeliño’s move to the Italian capital. Despite that link, the same source reports that the player is currently unimpressed with proposals made by all three Premier League clubs.
Elsewhere, Fabrizio Romano reports that Sunderland are in active negotiations with OGC Nice to sign Poland international goalkeeper Marcin Bulka. The 25-year-old is under contract until 2026 but could be available for around £17million (€20million).
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