It was a summer of turmoil for Sunderland, who could be fighting for Premier League survival again.
Sunderland will be left asking themselves “what if” when looking back at their summer activity, and it all started to go wrong when Sam Allardyce left the club.
The Black Cats’ preparations for the new season could not have gotten off to a worse start when England came calling for Big Sam.
David Moyes came in to replace him, and players started to make their way to the Stadium of Light, although none have really captured the imaginations of the fans.
A double swoop for Paddy McNair and Donald Love has proved unsuccessful so far, with both players having difficult starts to their careers on Wearside.
Papy Djilobodji arrived from Chelsea, and has been a bright spark, while Jason Denayer joined the club on loan on deadline day, adding more depth to Sunderland’s defence.
Another defender in the shape of Javier Manquillo also came in on loan, with the Spaniard competing with Love for the red and white right back spot.
Further up the pitch, Adnan Januzaj became the third Manchester United player to join Sunderland, but only on loan. The Belgian is probably the only signing that has excited the Sunderland faithful as he looks to restart his career at the tender age of 21.
Like many Premier League clubs, Sunderland broke their transfer record, with Didier Ndong becoming the club’s most expensive ever player, leaving Lorient in a £13.6 million deal.
The Gabon midfielder is an unknown quantity, and fans will have to wait and see whether the 22-year-old was worth the fee.
The biggest outgoing for David Moyes saw Younes Kaboul join Watford due to personal reasons. The Scot managed to keep a hold of Lamine Kone however, despite a transfer request and bid from Everton.
While fans can rejoice at keeping Kone, there will be frustration at the amount of players that appeared to slip through their fingers.
The biggest miss could be Yann M’Vila, who failed to complete a deal with Sunderland, although he should still arrive in January when his contract runs out at Rubin Kazan.
Despite agreeing a deal for the Frenchman in January, fans will be angry that their club failed to get a deal for M’Vila done early.
Another problem is up front, with an unsuccessful move for Steven Naismith meaning that Jermain Defoe is the only recognised striker at the club. At 33, there is huge pressure on Defoe to score the goals to keep Sunderland in the Premier League.
It was a stinker of a transfer window for Sunderland, despite bringing in eight new faces.
Are Sunderland in trouble? It’s too soon to say, but the signs aren’t good for David Moyes.
Grade: D
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