AliousWho’s In, Who’s Out? Sunderland Set for Summer Shake-Up After Premier League Promotion.
With Premier League football finally secured after a dramatic playoff triumph, Sunderland AFC are now bracing for a busy and potentially transformative summer transfer window.
Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman is at the heart of what promises to be a critical off-season for the Black Cats, as the club prepares for life in the top flight for the first time in nearly a decade. The jump in quality, intensity, and expectations means Sunderland must swiftly adapt their squad to ensure survival among England’s elite.
Several players currently on loan are expected to return to their parent clubs, while some of the club’s most influential performers are already attracting attention from higher-profile teams. As a result, departures are inevitable—and potentially significant in scale.
Speakman, along with newly appointed head coach Régis Le Bris and head of recruitment Stuart Harvey, is tasked with not only reinforcing key areas across the pitch but doing so in a way that retains the team’s youthful core—a major factor in their resurgence and promotion success. The balancing act will involve tough decisions, both in retaining emerging talent and in managing outgoings that might include high-value players like Jobe Bellingham, who has drawn interest from top clubs.
In the following breakdown, we examine the current Sunderland squad and evaluate who’s likely to be retained, who may be heading for the exit, and which departures seem unlikely—but not impossible—as the club gears up for the biggest test yet in this new era.
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