Aston Villa, Everton and Crystal Palace eyeing Sunderland star Lutsharel Geertruida
Aston Villa, Everton and Crystal Palace are all eyeing a move for the Sunderland star who has been one of the best players of the season, according to a new report.
Sunderland are making summer plans after a successful Premier League campaign
Brian Brobbey’s 90th minute winner at St James’ Park on Sunday will live long in the memory on Wearside.
The Dutch big man bundled home from close range to complete the comeback, send the support round and give Sunderland a league double over Newcastle United – their first derby win at St James’ Park in over a decade, and their eleventh consecutive game without defeat.
It summed up everything about an impressive first season back in the Premier League.
Sunderland have arrived in the top flight nine years after their last visit, full of new faces and new money – more than £100m invested in the summer, with the likes of Granit Xhaka and Habib Diarra spearheading the reshuffle.
Most of the viewers predicted a tough struggle at the bottom, a battle for survival decided on the last day.
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He didn’t hold back…
Instead, Régis Le Bris built a truly competitive team, sitting close to the top half and managing to beat their neighbors by winning the final break in front of their fans.
Survival is never really in doubt, progress is real, and with seven league games left to play, the Black Cats are on the outside looking for a place in Europe.
The question of the summer is how they build on it – and it’s starting to look like protecting some of their best assets will be a challenge in itself.
Sunderland face the threat of Lutsharel Geertruida as the rivals are ranked higher
Indeed, TEAMtalk reveals that Sunderland face a real battle to hold on to Lutsharel Geertruida, the Dutch defender who has impressed in many areas since arriving on a season-long loan from RB Leipzig last summer.
The 25-year-old played as a right-back, central midfielder, his ability to perform well in each position makes him one of the most versatile and important members of the Le Bris team.
His adaptation to Premier League football has been seamless, and the clubs he has seen are not small.
Liverpool, who held talks over a deal in January, are in trouble, but they are not alone.
Aston Villa, Everton, Tottenham and Crystal Palace are also understood to be keen on Geertruida, with European interest adding to other competitions.
The transmission environment around him is becoming more and more dense.
Sunderland hold the option to make the loan permanent for a reported fee of £20m – a price, for a player of his caliber and flexibility, that looks very reasonable at today’s market rates.
Whether they practice is another matter, as the final decision depends on the player as much as on the teams.
Le Bris himself admitted that Geertruida’s situation is difficult when he spoke about it at the beginning of the season, he praised his flexibility when he accepted that the player of his ambition, who is ahead of him in the World Cup this summer, naturally wants a clear way to start regular football.
His versatility, the manager noted, is both his greatest strength and a complex thing – it is important to the team but sometimes difficult to reconcile with the desire to have one position.
Meanwhile, Geertruida is apparently still happy on Wearside.
However, his representatives are aware of the growing line that is building outside the door.
Sunderland will probably do everything to keep him, but the clubs they face will make that very difficult.
Carragher was blown away by the Sunderland star’s “powerhouse performance” vs Newcastle
The Black Cats completed a double over their rivals in no time.
