Black Cats fans were rocked this week by the news that Tommy Watson would join Brighton in the summer, and it got us thinking about Sunderland’s top 10 most expensive sales of all time.
There was intense speculation surrounding Tommy Watson in January, before his move to Brighton collapsed in the final stages of the transfer window.
However, Sunderland always expected another approach for Watson in the summer. Still, no one quite anticipated that the deal would be done in April.
Fans believe the £10m Watson move is a good deal, but we’re particularly interested to see where the transfer ranks in the list of Sunderland’s top 10 most expensive sales of all time.
Photo by Mark Fletcher/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Photo by Mark Fletcher/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Sunderland’s most expensive sales of all time
10. Ross Stewart – £8m
Many Sunderland fans will tell you this is one of the most unusual transfers in the club’s history. Ross Stewart was a good player, and scored 40 goals in 80 games for the Black Cats as he helped them escape League One. Sounds like he’s worth £8m then, right?
Well, the odd thing is, Southampton paid the bumper fee for the striker in the summer of 2023 when he was severely injured. He’s still never quite gotten over that injury, either, and to this day has only featured nine times for the Saints, with a total of 183 minutes to his name.
9. Kenwyne Jones – £8m
Sunderland had a good habit of shifting strikers for big fees in the 2010s, and like many of them, Kenwyne Jones probably went for a little bit more than he was actually worth. 28 goals in 101 games for the Mackems was enough to attract attention from Stoke City, though, who paid around £8m for the Trinidad and Tobago international.
Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images
Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images
8. Connor Wickham – £9m
Connor Wickham made almost 100 appearances for Sunderland during his stay on Wearside, but the striker struggled in front of goal, all things considered. A return of just 15 goals in that time is hardly prolific, but it was enough to see Crystal Palace shell out an initial £7m for the forward, with a further £2m in add-ons (as per the BBC).
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7. Simon Mignolet – £9m
As you’ll find out further down this list, Liverpool love giving Sunderland money, it seems. Belgian goalkeeper Simon Mignolet made 101 appearances for the Black Cats between 2010 and 2013, and allowed Sunderland to make a nice profit.
They signed Mignolet for just over £2m, before moving him on to Liverpool for roughly £9m.
6. Tommy Watson – £10m
There are winners and losers in the Tommy Watson deal, but on the face of it right now, we’d say Sunderland have come out with a tidy sum for a player who has barely played for the senior squad. Sure, Watson is very talented, and Brighton may well have bagged a real gem, but with a year left on his current contract, Sunderland can’t grumble at an eight-figure sum.
It is thought there is a further £1m in add-ons to come, and a 20% sell-on clause, too. All in all, a great transaction for Sunderland.
Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images
Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images
5. Patrick van Aanholt – £14m
Having signed from Chelsea for a measly sum of just £1.5m, Sunderland turned Patrick van Aanholt into one of the most explosive full-backs in England during his three years on Wearside, and managed to make a huge profit, too.
The Dutchman eventually joined Crystal Palace (another club that appear to enjoy giving Sunderland cash) for a fee thought to be worth up to £14m (as per the BBC).
Photo by Ian Horrocks/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images
Photo by Ian Horrocks/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images
4. Jack Clarke – £15m
Jack Clarke may have been one of the best players for Sunderland this century, but he is not looked upon too kindly by Black Cats fans now after forcing through a move to Ipswich Town last summer. The irony is, he looks like he’s heading back to the Championship this summer with the Tractor Boys, and he’s really struggled in the top flight, too.
3. Jordan Henderson – £20m
Most of the deals to this point have been pretty good for Sunderland, with the club managing to secure big fees for players who are perhaps not quite worth what was paid. The opposite is true of Jordan Henderson, though.
The midfielder joined Liverpool in a deal worth around £20m and went on to win just about everything there is to win as a footballer, as well as becoming an England mainstay for years under Gareth Southgate. All in all, Liverpool got a bargain here.
Rank Player Left Joined Fee
1 Jordan Pickford June 2017 Everton £30m
2 Darren Bent January 2011 Aston Villa £24m
3 Jordan Henderson June 2011 Liverpool £20m
4 Jack Clarke August 2024 Ipswich £15m
5 Patrick van Aanholt January 2017 Crystal Palace £14m
6 Tommy Watson July 2025 Brighton £10m
7 Simon Mignolet June 2013 Liverpool £9m
8 Connor Wickham August 2015 Crystal Palace £9m
9 Kenwyne Jones August 2010 Stoke City £8m
10 Ross Stewart September 2023 Southampton £8m
2. Darren Bent – £24m
And now we go back to bloated transfer fees that didn’t pan out for the buying club. Darren Bent was a brilliant striker on his day — one of the best in the Premier League, at times — but his switch to Aston Villa didn’t really move the needle in terms of his output there.
Bent had bagged 36 goals in 63 games at Sunderland before moving to Villa Park and went on to score just 25 goals in 72 games for his new club. Not bad, but certainly not worthy of a £24m.
Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images
Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images
1. Jordan Pickford – £30m
Jordan Pickford left Sunderland after just one season of senior football. He shone in the 2016/17 campaign, but David Moyes predicted he would become a bench-warmer. He was wrong.
Pickford is now considered one of the best, most consistent goalkeeper in the Premier League, has an abundance of England caps to his name, and looks well worth the £30m Everton paid for him.
Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images
Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images
Will Sunderland’s transfer record be broken by Chris Rigg or Jobe Bellingham?
You’re probably now wondering whether that £30m record will be broken, and the short answer is, probably, yes. And likely very soon, too.
If Sunderland fail to get promoted this season, we expect both Chris Rigg and Jobe Bellingham to depart, and the two teenagers could and should command huge fees.
Sunderland are thought to value Rigg at £40m, a fee some clubs are deterred by, but he’s absolutely worth it given his massive potential.
Meanwhile, Bellingham is linked with Borussia Dortmund, while Chelsea are also ready to top offers made by other clubs for the young midfielder. We would imagine at least £30m will be paid for Bellingham if and when he leaves Sunderland.