Sunderland striker Luis Hemir will return to the club this summer with Juventus Next Gen unlikely to buy him, as per reports in Italy.
Sunderland had a particularly active end to the last summer transfer window at the start of the season. SAFC saw many players come in and out of the club, including several players leaving on loan.
Perhaps the most shocking of those deals was the one of Luis Hemir, who left the club to join Italian giants Juventus. He linked with their youth side, Juventus Next Gen, and held an option to buy the forward for a fee of up to €5m.
SAFC - Sunderland fans
Image courtesy of: CRAIG BROUGH/REUTERS.
However, it now looks like Hemir will return to the club this summer. According to Juventusnews24, Juventus will not be activating the option to buy the forward after a sub-par season from the Portuguese forward.
Hemir has scored just two goals in 27 games for the Italian youth side and has underperformed their expectations. Juventus had been tracking Hemir for some time and had been keen before he joined Sunderland back in 2023.
He will now return to Wearside, where he is yet to score in 23 games for the Black Cats. It is unknown what SAFC plan to do with him next season.
Mayenda offers him hope
Eliezer Mayenda has been one of Sunderland’s best players this season and is a huge reason for their success. However, this time last year, fans viewed him on the same level as Hemir.
The Spaniard had also failed to score last season and was sent on loan to Hibernian in Scotland. During that spell, he failed to make more than four appearances and was written off by many in the SAFC faithful.
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SAFC - Sunderland man Eliezer Mayenda
Image courtesy of: ANDREW BOYERS/REUTERS.
However, just 12 months later, he has eight goals in 37 games and is a Spain U21 international. Mayenda could have a big summer ahead, with European interest probable, but the same cannot be said for Hemir.
Would have been a big profit for SAFC
If Sunderland managed to secure up to €5m for Hemir, it would have been one of their best ever deals. While he has shown signs of promise in his youth career, that has simply not transferred into the first team.
He was not the only one who struggled with the Black Cats last season, but it is clear after this year that he needs a fresh start. It was largely a no-lose scenario for SAFC when signing him for less than 10x what Juve were willing to pay.
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