Transfer latest, backroom staff, Jobe Bellingham update and Chris Rigg contract: The Sunderland AFC Q&A

Sunderland’s preparations for the new campaign have stepped up over the last week, with Régis Le Bris appointed as the club’s new head coach and the fixture schedule released.

In our Q&A we bring you up to speed with all the latest from the club and what to expect next…

When does Régis Le Bris start work and what’s the latest on his backroom staff?

Le Bris arrived in the country earlier this week and officially starts work on Monday, though he is of course using the time at the moment to get settled and begin preparations. The players will be back over the course of the next few days for testing, before the pre-season training programme begins properly next week. 

While the makeup of his backroom staff has not yet been confirmed, it’s understood that there will be something of a restructuring taking place. Mike Dodds and Michael Proctor were always going to retain a role in the staff no matter who took over as head coach, alongside goalkeeping coach Alessandro Barcherini. Le Bris is also expected to be supported by some of his own staff, and there is a vacancy within the group as Anthony Hayes, who joined as first-team coach on a short-term basis for the final few months of last season, has taken up a permanent role at Gillingham. It’s likely, therefore, that multiple additions will be made in the coming weeks. That’s understood to be an ongoing process. Sunderland had to go through an extensive process to get approval for Le Bris to join and work in the UK, and it will of course be the same for any other member of staff who arrives from abroad. 

What’s the latest on the rumours linking Jobe Bellingham away from the club? And what about any other key sales?

While there is interest in a number of Sunderland’s best young players this summer, Bellingham has caught the headlines after a number of bids from Premier League side Crystal Palace. Palace have a strong track record of recruiting players from the EFL and believe Bellingham could be one of the next breakout stars. 

Sunderland, though, are standing firm so far. He has three years left to run on his current contract and another strong season could see his value grow even further. As such, they’re not entertaining any bids less than £20 million and it remains to be seen whether any club is prepared to reach that valuation. Palace are far from the only team interested, and so it seems like a saga that is likely to continue through the summer. 

Bellingham himself may have a decision to make as to whether now is the right time to step up to the Premier League, or whether he is better playing another full season in the Championship at a club where he is settled and enjoying himself. 

While a number of players are attracting interest, club sources have made clear that there is no financial pressure to sell this summer and so their valuations will be very high. Jack Clarke remains the most likely to depart with talks over a new deal long at an impasse, but with two years left there’s no major pressure in this particular window. So while there may be a big departure, Sunderland have made clear that they are determined to keep the core of the team together and add to it.

What’s the latest on contract talks with Dan Neil and Chris Rigg?

Neil knocked back an initial offer of a new deal from the club amid the uncertainty around the search for a new head coach. The club clearly have work to do to convince him that he can reach the Premier League with Sunderland, but they’re hopeful that they can start that process now that Le Bris is in place and the new season nears. Neil has always been clear that his goal is to lead the club back to the Premier League and so hopefully an agreement can be reached. With two years left on his current deal, there’s no major rush for either party.

Rigg is now eligible to sign a professional deal having turned 17 but he understandably has been in no rush to commit while Sunderland continued their head coach search. As he still has a year to run on his scholarship deal, the club have been relaxed about that. Any club wishing to sign him now would have to agree a fee with the Black Cats. That would change next summer when his scholarship expires, with the fee being set by a tribunal if there was no agreement between the clubs. In theory, that could force Sunderland into business now if Rigg was clear that he intended to depart but there have been no indications of that at this stage. The broad strokes of a first pro deal were agreed last summer when Rigg signed his scholarship, and it’s understood that there have been more positive talks in recent times. As such, there’s some quiet optimism that things will progress over the next couple of weeks as Rigg returns for pre-season.

Can we expect transfer business to pick up now that a new head coach has been appointed?

To an extent. Sunderland’s head coach only has a limited input into recruitment, hence why some deals in the goalkeeping department were agreed and completed even before Le Bris was appointed. Sunderland do feel they’re in a good position to kick on, though, as Le Bris discussed the club’s recruitment plans as part of the lengthy interview process and then as he waited to officially start work. Targets and positions in need of strengthening have been discussed and so everything is very much in place to start the ball rolling. The caveat to that is that it has been generally speaking a very slow start to the window across football, with the Euros thought to be the main reason for that. It may be a little while before Premier League and other top-tier clubs across Europe start doing their major business and that will obviously have a knock-on impact on the Championship. Particularly in the loan market, it’s likely that premier League clubs will keep many youngsters around as their players on international duty recover and rejoin training later in the summer. Many moves will likely happen late on as a result. Sunderland are working to try and push some targets over the line in the meantime, however, and will hope to strengthen in the coming weeks.