Kristjaan Speakman sanctions Sunderland transfer exit as Ian Holloway swoops for highly-rated youth star
A highly-rated Sunderland youngster is set to leave this month, with Ian Holloway closing in on a deal...
Swindon Town are close to completing a permanent deal for Ben Middlemas, with an agreement edging towards completion, The Echo understands.
The League Two promotion hopefuls have moved quickly to progress talks for the 21-year-old, with negotiations advancing on both a transfer fee and personal terms as they look to finalise the midfielder’s arrival. Middlemas signed professional terms with Sunderland in 2023 but did not make a senior appearance for the Black Cats.
A box-to-box midfielder who has spent his entire development on Wearside, Middlemas’ senior experience is limited, with his only taste of men’s football coming during a short loan spell with South Shields in the 2024-25 campaign. Since then, he has been a key figure for Graeme Murty’s Under-21s, featuring 28 times across the season and frequently wearing the captain’s armband, including five appearances during his non-league loan.
Middlemas was just 16 when he was first named on Sunderland’s first-team bench for an EFL Trophy tie against Manchester United, before being included again for the Emirates FA Cup Third Round trip to Shrewsbury Town in January 2023.
Swindon, who sit in the second automatic promotion place in League Two just beyond the halfway stage of the campaign, are pushing for a return to League One under Ian Holloway. Middlemas is expected to become their first permanent signing of the January window, following loan moves for Aidan Borland and Michael Olakigbe.
Despite limited senior minutes, his Under-21 output has been impressive. Middlemas has recorded two goals and seven assists in 21 appearances this season, already matching his total of nine goal involvements from the entire 2024-25 campaign.
What did Le Bris say after the Everton game?
Régis Le Bris has sought to ease fears surrounding Brian Brobbey’s fitness while confirming that Bertrand Traoré is a concern ahead of Crystal Palace’s trip to the Stadium of Light next weekend.
Brobbey was introduced for Eliezer Mayenda during the second half of Sunderland’s FA Cup third-round tie at Hill Dickinson Stadium, before being withdrawn at the interval of extra time as the Black Cats went on to beat Everton on penalties. Speaking after the game, Le Bris stressed that the decision to remove the striker was purely precautionary.
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Sunderland were able to call on Noah Sadiki for the full 120 minutes following his recent return from the Africa Cup of Nations, but Reinildo Mandava and Traoré were both absent from the squad. While Reinildo is expected to return to contention for next Saturday, Traoré has emerged as an early doubt, with the extent of his issue still unclear.
“We are not too worried about Brian because it was tightness in his hamstrings,” Le Bris said. “We have had this previously with him, so we didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks. With Reinildo and Bertrand, we will see. Rei might be available next week, but Bertrand has come back with an injury that we will have to assess. It is an injury issue he has come back with, but we don’t really know any more than that yet.”
Sunderland will also be without Habib Diarra and Chemsdine Talbi for the visit of Crystal Palace, after both Senegal and Morocco reached the AFCON semi-finals. The pair are set to feature either in the third-place play-off next Saturday or the final next Sunday, depending on results in the last four.
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