Sunderland pursuing deal to sign £25m midfielder

Sunderland‘s recruitment team have, rightly, been lauded for the work that they did in the summer transfer window last year to build a team capable of staying in the Premier League.

The likes of Granit Xhaka, Nordi Mukiele, Omar Alderete, and Brian Brobbey came in to help the Black Cats to qualify for the Europa League in their first season back in the big time.

Not all of their signings went to plan, though, and there are still question marks over the club-record £27m deal they agreed for central midfielder Habib Diarra.

The 22-year-old talent did not enjoy the best first season in English football, scoring two goals and providing two assists in 20 appearances in the Premier League.

He also struggled with the physicality of the division. Diarra lost 55% of his ground duels and 54% of his aerial battles in the league for the Black Cats, as opposition players found it too easy to get the better of him.

Sunderland pursuing deal to sign Belgian star

The Senegal international, who went to the Africa Cup of Nations, did not score or create goals on a regular basis, or offer consistent defensive contributions to the team off the ball.

That may be why the club are now looking at a player who could arrive at the Stadium of Light as a much better option for Regis Le Bris in the middle of the park.

According to the Daily Record, Sunderland are one of a number of clubs pursuing a deal to sign Celtic central midfielder Arne Engels in the summer transfer window.

The report claims that fellow Premier League sides Nottingham Forest and Fulham are also interested in landing the Belgium international, which means that the Black Cats will face competition for his signature.

It adds that sources have told them that the player has switched his representation this summer in an attempt to take the next step in his career by leaving the Hoops for one of Europe’s major leagues, after two seasons in Glasgow.

TEAMtalk recently reported that the Scottish giants are looking for a fee of £25m or more to allow the star to leave, which means that he could join for less than the £27m that they paid for Diarra.

Why Arne Engels would be better than Habib Diarra for Sunderland

The Black Cats should splash the cash to pay the £25m fee that could be enough to secure his services, because the Celtic star has the potential to be an even better option for Le Bris.

As aforementioned, Diarra has not offered enough consistency on the ball or enough strength or defensive nous out of possession since his club-record move from Strasbourg last year.

Engels’ form for Celtic in the 2025/26 campaign, though, suggests that he would not have as many issues as a performer for Sunderland in midfield in the Premier League or the Europa League.

On the ball, the Hoops star appears to have more to offer to the team as both a scorer and a creator of goals from a midfield position, particularly with his ability to create high-quality chances for his teammates.

That is further evidenced by his return of seven ‘big chances’ created and three assists in eight appearances in the Europa League last season, creating seven times as many ‘big chances’ in Europe as Diarra managed in the Premier League.

Engels also averaged 2.2 tackles and interceptions per game and won 53% of his ground duels in the Europa League for the Scottish giants, showing that he can offer quality in and out of possession in the middle of the park for his side.

The Belgian ace, who was described as “world-class” by ex-Celtic defender Charlie Mulgrew, appears to have the ability to be an upgrade on Diarra in midfield by offering more creativity, more tackles and interceptions, and more efficiency in duels.

That is why Sunderland should be happy to pay the £25m asking price to beat Forest and Fulham to his signature in the coming weeks of the window.