Sunderland dealt significant transfer blow

Sunderland have been dealt a significant blow in the transfer market, with news that target Ali Koiki is set to snub them and move the Charlton.

Phil Parkinson’s men have been in the market for a left-back all summer, and the highly-rated 22-year-old fits the bill perfectly. He rejected a new deal with the Clarets and is in search of regular football.

However, Football Insider now reports that the defender is due to sign for the Addicks, who have just seen their takeover go through, putting them on firmer financial ground. Despite losing 2-0 to Lincoln City this weekend, Lee Bowyer’s side are likely to challenge the top six this season and Koika would make a solid acquisition for them.

It is a blow to the Black Cats, who have been looking to strengthen the left side of the field for some time. Koiki is an exciting talent, released by Crystal Palace as a youngster before moving to Turf Moor. He hasn’t made a solitary first-team outing for Sean Dyche’s side, but he has featured as an unused substitute on four occasions.

Koiki has appeared in the senior game, spending the second half of the 2018/19 season with Swindon Town, for whom he made 15 appearances.

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This could be a major blow to Sunderland’s recruitment as they hunt strength ahead of the October 5th deadline. Remember though, that deadline doesn’t include free agents, so the saga could easily rumble on.

This is perhaps one of the few seasons where the deadline means very little; many players are currently unavailable and looking for clubs, meaning the pool of talent teams can draw from is likely to be big going into the late autumn. 

However, that won’t placate some Sunderland fans, who will be getting a little tired of hearing they have missed out on targets, especially to their play-off rivals of 2018/19.