Sunderland’s Edouard Michut and Jobe Bellingham transfer decisions assessed ahead of summer window

Sunderland are in advanced talks to sign Jobe Bellingham from Birmingham  - but what will that mean for the rest of their summer transfer business?

Bellingham, 17, will reportedly cost a fee of around £3million after making 22 Championship appearances during the 2022/23 campaign.

The teenager’s arrival would leave Sunderland with plenty of options in central midfield, with Dan Neil, Pierre Ekwah, Corry Evans, Abdoullah Ba and Jay Matete all competing for places.

There is also an option for the Black Cats to re-sign Edouard Michut on a permanent deal from PSG, following his initial loan spell on Wearside, for a reported fee of €2.5 million.

Following Sunderland’s play-off defeat at Luton, Michut issued a heartfelt message to thank supporters for the 2022/23 season, amid uncertainty as to whether the club will activate their option-to-buy clause.

So does Bellingham represent better value for money?

At 17, Bellingham is two and a half years younger than Michut, 20, yet the latter has made more of an impact in the Championship this season.

Despite a frustrating start to his Sunderland career, Michut became an important player for the Black Cats after breaking into the team in December and becoming a regular midfield partner for Neil.

In total the Frenchman made 24 appearances (clocking up 1255 minutes) for Tony Mowbray’s side, including 12 starts, yet he did lose his place to Ekwah at the end of the campaign.

Bellingham meanwhile made 22 league appearances (racking up 727 minutes), including five starts, as he stepped up to senior football.

In terms of their positions, Bellingham has operated in a more advanced role compared to Michut this campaign.

The Birmingham man has averaged 1.1 shots per 90 minutes compared to Michut’s 0.57 (according to Wyscout), while he also had more touches in the opposition’s penalty area - averaging 1.73 per 90 minutes compared to Michut’s 0.65.

As Sunderland fans have seen, Michut, at 5 ft 8, is a diminutive, technical player who is tidy in possession and can help the side play through midfield with a neat range of passes.

This season the Frenchman received the ball 34.92 times on average per 90 minutes, significantly more than Bellingham’s average of 21.24.

Yet at a tender age, it’s still unclear what sort of midfielder Bellingham will become. He has the attributes to be an all-action box-to-box midfielder, but has been used in a No 10 position this campaign.

And while Michut did adapt well to the English game in the second half of the 2022/23 campaign, Bellingham would offer more physicality as a long-term option.

Even this season Bellingham competed in 3.53 aerial duels per 90 minutes (winning 45% of them) compared to Michut’s average of 1.24 (winning 31.7%).

With Neil, Ekwah, Matete and Ba all under long-term contracts, and Evans expected to miss the start of next season due to injury, Sunderland will have to weigh up what they need to get the right balance in midfield.

That will start by making decisions on Michut and Bellingham, while also keeping track of their wider budget to strengthen other areas of the squad.