Sunderland have edge over Marseille to sign Matthis Abline – Exclusive
Sunderland are in the hunt for a new striker as they build a squad worthy of Premier League survival.
The Black Cats have already strengthened the heart of their team in spades with several central midfielders and wingers already signed.
Now, the North East outfit are working hard to provide competition for Elliezer Mayenda and Wilson Isidor at the Stadium of Light.
Nantes star Matthis Abline is one of several Sunderland targets in attack as they cast their net far and wide for potential acquisitions.
Sunderland given Abline confidence boost
There have already been rave reviews of the striker from across the Channel, with one French football expert claiming Abline could be worth £42.5m in the future.
Sunderland may have already had a bid rejected for Abline, but there are reports that the Wearside club will come back in with another bid.
Leeds United have also been linked with the Abline, who delivered 11 goal contributions in all competitions last season.
| Matthis Abline’s 2024/25 Ligue 1 statistics | Total |
| Apperances | 34 |
| Goals | 9 |
| Expected goals (xG) | 8.10 |
| Shot conversion | 12% |
| Assists | 2 |
| Big chances created | 6 |
Now, France-based journalist Luke Entwistle has provided insight on Abline, speaking exclusively to Mackem News.
“Abline is a player I’m a big, big fan of. He was one of my favourite, if not my favourite strikers in Ligue 1 last season,” he said.
“He had a pretty formidable partnership with Moses Simon, who has since left to join Paris FC.
“He played this split striker role, where he would drift out wide quite often, but he’s also really good at occupying central spaces.
“Abline can do that hold-up role, can also just play off the wings, and has a box presence as well.
“He’s a strong finisher, and his xG and his performances highlight that, so he’s a really versatile profile in the sense that he does lots of things simultaneously.
“Nantes are in a position having sold Simon, and I think they’re selling Douglas Augusto and Pedro Chirivella, and a couple of others, where they keep coming out publicly saying they don’t need to sell players.
“They touted £43.31million for Marseille, even though that seems specific to Marseille, because they don’t like Marseille in the way that they poached their players previously.
“I don’t think it costs £43.31million, but because of their reticence to sell and saying they don’t need to sell, they got in a new, ambitious manager who did really well at Dunkerque last year, the phase of the project is changing a little bit.
“They’re trying to be a bit more ambitious in looking to retain some of the players that performed well last season, and Abline is definitely by a country mile head and shoulders above the rest of the players within that squad.”
Black Cats should negotiate Abline fee
With all that being said about Abline, he sounds like he would be a worthwhile acquisition for Sunderland.
Furthermore, the fact that Nantes have slapped a seismic transfer fee for Marseille specifically means that the Wearsiders should negotiate a lower fee.
Habib Diarra stands as the record transfer arrival at the Stadium of Light for £30million, and if they can go lower than that, then Abline would be worth pursuing.
Although he bagged nine goals in Ligue 1 last season, it seems as though the 22-year-old has a significant future ahead of him.
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