Why Sunderland are signing Jules Ahoka and what he'll bring to the squad explained

On the face of it, this is a genuinely quite extraordinary move from Sunderland.

While a medical is still be to completed and the experience with Dayann Methalie this week means it is wise to proceed with some caution for now, the Black Cats have agreed a deal worth potentially €10 million to sign Jules Ahoka from Royal Antwerp. It is just twelve months since Ahoka made the move from AC Normands in DR Congo for a fee reported to be somewhere between €150,000 and €250,000. To date, he has still made just four competitive appearances for Royal Antwerp and one of those was as a late substitute.

Yet beside this stark numbers, there is a logic to Sunderland's move and it tells us plenty about the project Florent Ghisolfi is overseeing...

Ahoka's rapid rise - and getting there before the elite clubs

Understandably, it took Ahoka a little time to adjust to his move to Belgium last summer and there were also some minor injury issues, not at all uncommon when a player adapts to a new training schedule and level of play. By the end of the campaign however, Ahoka had done enough to earn his debut for Royal Antwerp and shone in the final two games of the campaign. Ahoka actually broke into the side as a centre back, but has since reverted to the holding midfield position where he is expected to stay moving forward. That flexibility will be another tick for Sunderland, though.

Ahoka was then the breakout star of this summer's prestigious Toulon tournament, which we can say with a good degree of confidence Sunderland were paying close attention to given that Jocelin Ta Bi also starred for Ivory Coast. The 20-year-old took that form into pre-season in Belgium and played the first two games of the new Pro League season, where to put it bluntly his performances were off the charts. This is a tiny sample size and so we must process these stats with a good degree of caution, but they are eye-catching. Ahoka is in those opening two games ranked in the top 6% of duels won, and the top 8% for aerial duels won. The top 20% for tackles and interceptions, and the very best in the division so far for recoveries. Despite these impressive defensive numbers, he has still managed to rank in the top 25% for touches in the opposition box and picked up an assist. These impressive numbers continue the trend from the Toulon tournament, and no doubt reflect his performances in the other youth games that Sunderland will have access to for their analysis and scouting.

With so little evidence there is of course a big element of risk here for Sunderland, but they know from their recent experience that good performances in the intense and competitive Belgian Pro League translate well to the Premier League. This is also the model in action: moving decisively to give a player an opportunity before the very top clubs are prepared to do so.

If Ghisolfi and Sunderland are right about his trajectory, this fee will look a bargain. It's worth noting that despite only having seen him in action for a few games, Antwerp fans are gutted about the news and some Belgian football insiders The Echo has spoken to over the last 24 hours are convinced that Sunderland have signed a star in the making.

An important piece of the puzzle this season

Sunderland had initially gone into the January transfer window with cover in defensive midfield as a key priority, but didn't find the right option and ultimately opted to proceed with Lutsharel Geertruida as additional cover. The reality is that it is a very difficult position to recruit into, given that everyone knows Granit Xhaka is the man in possession of the shirt and not giving it up anytime soon. This is a smart way to approach the issue, bringing in a player who can make an impact now but will have time to adapt and learn from one of the very best in the world to begin with. There's no major pressure on Ahoka, as in truth if Xhaka were to pick up an early injury it's likely Régis Le Bris would drop Noah Sadiki deeper and bring Habib Diarra or Chris Rigg into the XI.

Ahoka can pick up minutes as and when across an expanded schedule, and if he progresses so quickly that he can't be ignored then all the better.

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The work still to do

If Sunderland are able to conclude the deal for Ahoka as hoped, then they will have made significant strides in their summer plan. They have Geertruida's replacement in Thomas Meunier, and the left back competition for Reinildo they so obviously needed in Dayann Methalie. Ahoka would complete their central midfield options, leaving a right winger the obvious priority between now and the deadline on September 1st. Le Bris and Sunderland would also like to sign a versatile striker in the mould of Eliezer Mayenda, while they have this summer looked at additional centre back options and could move again on that front. There's still work to do to make this a successful window for the Black Cats, but they are now moving firmly in the right direction.

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