Sunderland 'preparing bid' for cut-price national team midfielder
Sunderland are already preparing their summer transfer moves.
Sunderland are preparing a bid for Royal Charleroi midfielder Yacine Titraoui, according to reports.
The Black Cats have been linked with Titraoui across the last two transfer windows without a move transpiring, with the five-time Algeria international remaining in Charleroi, where he’s registered six goals and four assists in 69 appearances across all competitions. This season has been particularly impressive for Titraoui, who has registered four goals and two assists in 35 domestic appearances, helping Charleroi qualify for the Uefa Conference League play-off group in the Belgian Pro League, while reaching the Croky Cup semi-finals.
Sunderland preparing Yacine Titraoui bid
This strong form once again appears to have attracted the attention of Sunderland, with MediaFoot reporting that the club have already been in contact with the 22-year-old’s agent and are preparing to make a bid ‘in the coming weeks’.
However, Sunderland look set to face stiff competition in the market, with Ligue 1 giants Marseille heavily linked with Titraoui, who played in each of Algeria’s most recent friendlies against Guatemala (7-0 win) and Uruguay (0-0 draw). Alongside Marseille, Premier League rivals Leeds United and Nottingham Forest have been credited with an interest in Titraoui. The midfielder is an attractive prospect, given his valuation as recently as February was as little as £4.25m.
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Where would Yacine Titraoui fit in at Sunderland?
Should he move to the Stadium of Light, Titraoui would join a stacked midfield line-up under Regis Le Bris, including the likes of Granit Xhaka, Noah Sadiki, Enzo Le Fee and Habib Diarra.
The former Paradou AC man is best deployed as a defensive shield in front of the back four, averaging 1.4 interceptions and 1.9 tackles per 90 minutes in the Pro League this season, according to FotMob. Titraoui has also averaged 41 passes per 90 - a team-high among Charleroi players - and has created 27 chances, showing he pairs elite ball-playing skills with his defensive instincts. With that in mind, Titraoui would most likely be viewed as competition and a long-term replacement for Xhaka.