Frazier Campbell on Régis Le Bris, Granit Xhaka, Darren Bent, Steve Bruce and Sunderland's season
Sunderland owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus has been speaking about the club’s potential January transfer plans
Regis Le Bris’ men have taken 17 points from their opening nine matches, and could move up to second in the table with a win over Everton on Monday evening following a stellar run of form in recent weeks.
What has Kyril Louis-Dreyfus said about Sunderland’s January transfer plans following positive start to new Premier League season?
When asked if he was surprised by the club’s start to the new season, Louis-Dreyfis responded: “To be honest we got promoted into a new league, our starting XI is almost entirely of new players so we didn't really know what to expect coming into the season, but to be honest we've been very pleased with the start we've made and especially with the team. For us the most important thing is that the team represents the community and the values of the club and for us we think that, as in the wins and the losses we've had this year, I think the team made us proud and that's the most important thing.”
Turning his attention to transfers, he continued: “I think the stats showed to us that unless you do something extraordinary you're likely going to go back to the Championship. For us, we didn't really set ourselves a budget in terms of the money we want to spend - we had an ambition to try and bring in the players we want and fortunately a lot of the deals we wanted to do we were able to conclude them, and as a result of that the spend in the end was big, but most importantly we got the players that we wanted.
“I would say definitely a little bit [that the great start could affect Sunderland’s approach in January] because obviously if we're in the bottom three by Christmas or we're in the top six by Christmas that changes the ambition a little bit. We're currently preparing for all scenarios but we've been doing that since the summer, so hopefully we'll be going into the January window with a top ten finish in mind and we will prepare and execute the transfer window to give us the best chance.”
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The Sunderland chief was also asked if the club would continue to look at building a youthful squad in line with the Black Cats’ recent recruitment model, to which he replied: “To be honest it [building a young team] has become a little bit of our DNA in the last four-and-a-half years. We've had the youngest team in League One, in the Championship, and I think we're the second youngest team this year in the Premier League.
“Now I don't think we'll make a decision just based on age, however we think that this club and the style of play with a lot of energy and belief suits a young team and I think we've seen that this year - but having said that I think the experience we've recruited this year has been very very important. People talk a lot about Granit Xhaka, but I think all the other experienced players around them - Reinildo, and even the ones from the year before, Luke O’Nien - play a vital role in the squad so I would say we've taken a little bit of a pragmatic view but not going against our core beliefs.”
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