Sam Allardyce reveals latest on Emmanuel Eboue's Sunderland future

Emmanuel Eboue's chances of a Sunderland lifeline are all-but-over after the Black Cats have received no fresh contact from the ex-Arsenal defender.
Emmanuel EboueEmmanuel Eboue
Emmanuel Eboue

Eboue was served with his two-week notice by Sunderland almost a fortnight ago after the 32-year-old was banned by FIFA for a year due to his failure to settle a debt with his former agent Sebastien Boisseau.

The right-back was handed a get-out by both FIFA and Sunderland, if he was able to resolve the unpaid debt – understood to be in excess of a million Euros.

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But Eboue has not spoken with Sunderland since his contract was terminated, and boss Sam Allardyce has now accepted that the ex-Ivory Coast international’s hopes of helping the relegation-threatened Black Cats are over.

Allardyce said: “We haven’t heard anything so I think the writing’s on the wall.

“We’ve not had hide nor hare of what position he’s in, or if he’s about to settle it or not.

“I think we’ll have to draw a line under it this week.”

Eboue was released by Galatasaray at the end of last season, but penned a short-term deal at Sunderland last month after proving his fitness during a four-week trial spell at the Stadium of Light.

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However when he arrived at the Academy of Light, Eboue failed to make Sunderland aware of the outstanding debt, which dates back to 2014 when a FIFA disciplinary commission ruled in favour of his ex-agent.

Sunderland had no means to learn of the issue when they registered Eboue with both the FA and FIFA after agreeing personal terms over a contract until the end of the season.

Boisseau then triggered the year-long ban, which prevents Eboue being involved in any football activity and could spell the end of his playing career.

“I’m disappointed on two counts,” added Allardyce.

“One, I’m disappointed that he never told us about it in the first place when he first got here.

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“We may have been able to resolve the situation before it got to this desperate stage.

“And then of course, the hard work that we put in to get him to this level and me thinking he could play a part in our run-in as an experienced player.”