Fabrizio Romano confirms Loïc Badé and Amine Adli will join new clubs, ending Sunderland’s transfer hopes
Fabrizio Romano has issued a fresh update on two players previously linked with Sunderland, confirming the futures of both Loïc Badé and Amine Adli.
Sunderland had been credited with strong interest in Badé earlier this summer, with Spanish outlet El Chiringuito and French publication FootMercato claiming the Black Cats and Bournemouth had been “in pole position” for the Sevilla defender in recent weeks. Marseille and Villarreal were also monitoring developments, while Aston Villa were said to be keeping tabs on the situation.
Badé, 25, capped once by France, is under contract at Sevilla until 2029 and had been valued at around £25million. The centre-back was considered a potential target as Sunderland looked to strengthen their defensive options following promotion to the Premier League, but Leverkusen appear to have won the race.
Romano also confirmed that Amine Adli, another player Sunderland have tracked this window, will join Bournemouth instead. Sunderland, Wolves, and Marseille had all been credited with interest in the 25-year-old winger earlier in the summer, but the Cherries are understood to have agreed a deal worth around £25.3million.
Adli has been a key figure for Leverkusen since joining from Toulouse in 2021, registering 23 goals and 24 assists in 142 appearances. However, his playing time would have been restricted following the £10.1million arrival of Ernest Poku from AZ Alkmaar and ongoing moves for further attacking reinforcements, including Brighton’s Facundo Buonanotte and Monaco’s Maghnes Akliouche.
For Sunderland, attention now shifts to alternative targets as Régis Le Bris and sporting director Florent Ghisolfi continue to pursue late-window reinforcements.
What did Régis Le Bris say after Sunderland vs West Ham?
Head coach Régis Le Bris hailed Sunderland’s players after their 3-0 victory over West Ham United but warned that humility and togetherness must remain central to their Premier League campaign.
The Black Cats returned to the top flight in style on Saturday, with second-half goals from Eliezer Mayenda, Dan Ballard and Wilson Isidor sealing their first Premier League win in over eight years.
Le Bris was delighted with the way his players responded to half-time instructions after a challenging first half and praised their ability to execute the gameplan. He also revealed that captain Granit Xhaka addressed the squad post-match to stress the importance of staying united.
“I'm happy for the fans and the players and the club,” Le Bris said. “We had different phases of pre-season and we spoke about the layers we needed to add. It was obvious that it starts from the foundations – we showed that the team is working well.
He added: “They were hard to beat in a mid to low block. The first half was a bit more difficult but during the second half we felt we could get opportunities through regains in the middle and that we could score through counter attacks.
“We didn't change many important things at half time. We spoke a bit about their goalkeeper restarts and our high press, we went for man for man and they found two or three opportunities with long balls. So it was really important to be strong in duels. We made just two or three little decisions, and it made a difference.”
Le Bris was also keen to highlight that Sunderland’s three goals came from players who were already at the club last season, despite a summer of heavy recruitment. “It's really important for two reasons, they showed they can step up [first and foremost],” he said.
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“We'll see later, but today it was the case. And it's really important because they keep the identity of the club and the way we worked last season. We built this strength about togetherness, the way we work as a team. The players worked well as a team and they showed that again today.”
The Frenchman added that while the opening-day victory was a proud moment for everyone connected to the club, Sunderland would remain focused on the long campaign ahead.
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