Chelsea play Guiu blinder as Sunderland at risk of multi-million pound punishment
Sunderland are close to sealing the signing of Marc Guiu on a season-long loan from Chelsea.
The Spaniard is expected to bolster Regis Le Bris’ options in attack, as the Frenchman looks to oversee a comfortable return to the Premier League.
The Black Cats have shown huge ambition so far this summer, with Granit Xhaka one of seven new players to arrive at The Stadium of Light in recent weeks.
And Sunderland are not ready to stop there, with several more arrivals planned before the window closes at the start of September.
Chelsea insert Guiu penalty clause
Guiu joined Chelsea from Barcelona last summer, after the London club triggered a £5million release clause in the forward’s contracts.
A graduate from the iconic La Masia academy, the youngster had already made his debut for the Spanish giants, scoring in both the Champions League and La Liga.
But a move to Chelsea promised further minutes, and Guiu enjoyed a strong campaign in the European Conference League, scoring six goals in just seven games before a hamstring injury ended his season prematurely.
A move to Sunderland could see the Spaniard offered more game time in the Premier League next season, with Le Bris expected to offer a fair chance to all of his options through the middle.
| Sunderland’s potential options through the middle |
| Wilson Isidor |
| Eliezer Mayenda |
| Marc Guiu |
| Nazariy Rusyn |
| Ahmed Abdullahi |
And the Frenchman will likely be forced to play Guiu regularly, given the emergence of a clause that will be placed within the loan deal by Chelsea.
According to The Athletic (5 August), the negotiation has included inserting a clause that would see a penalty fee paid, should Guiu not play a certain number of games.
Sunderland are said to be comfortable with the clause, and do not see it being problematic.
The deal is said to be akin to the one that saw Armando Broja join Fulham last season, in which the penalty clause saw the Cottagers pay £4million after the Albanian forward failed to appear in at least 60 per cent of the matches during his time on loan.
Sunderland are therefore at risk of a similar financial punishment if Guiu does not play a certain number of matches.
Sunderland can afford to take the risk
Sunderland will not be overly concerned about the clause inserted in the deal for Guiu, with the benefits set to outweigh the potential negatives.
The Spaniard could well thrive in the North East, in which case the clause will not even be under consideration.
But at the very least, the Black Cats will receive quality depth for a fee much more palatable than what it would take to sign a player permanently.
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