Sunderland have one of the Premier League’s most consistent players and he’s flying under the radar
I say this with the utmost respect for Sunderland fans, but Regis Le Bris isn’t going to be at the Stadium of Light much longer if he keeps doing what he’s doing.
Le Bris arrived at Sunderland in June 2024 after a protracted search for Michael Beale‘s replacement, without many Mackems on Wearside having the foggiest idea about who he was.
When BBC Radio Newcastle spoke to Sunderland fans after Le Bris‘ appointment, the most common response was “I’ve never heard of him”.
But now try to find one member of the adult population in Sunderland who doesn’t know the 49-year-old Frenchman’s name.
In his first full season in charge, Le Bris won promotion from the Championship and now, eight games into the 2025-26 Premier League campaign, the Black Cats are in seventh place.
One of the key factors behind the improvement Le Bris has overseen at the Stadium of Light has been his ability to improve the crop of players he inherited, while also adding to his squad cleverly and methodically with talent from across the footballing world.
Why isn’t anyone (outside of Sunderland) talking about Trai Hume?
And one of the players who was already on the books at Sunderland when Le Bris arrived was right-back Trai Hume.
Sunderland signed Hume, 23, from Northern Irish side Linfield in January 2022 for around £200,000.
The right-back now has a whopping market value of £13million, according to transfermarkt, and any deal that would take him away from the Stadium of Light would no doubt be way in excess of that.
I began this story about suggesting how Le Bris’ success in the North-East could lead him to being poached by clubs with the means to pay him the big bucks and offer him the chance of winning silverware.
Unfortunately, the same could go for Hume if other clubs stumble upon how good this young man from Ballymena actually is.
- Read more: Sunderland’s new Jordan Pickford is already on Regis Le Bris’ radar as ‘rival clubs’ eye up transfer
How Trai Hume ranks in the 25-26 Premier League
Stats by Sofascore show that Hume is one of the best-performing defenders in the Premier League this season.
When talking about Sunderland’s defensive players, the spotlight has understandably been on Robin Roefs, Nordi Mukiele or Dan Ballard, leaving little praise left over for the man under our spotlight – Northern Ireland’s Hume.
- Hume ranks 17th for defenders in the Premier League this season for tackles (15). One more than Everton powerhouse James Tarkowski.
- He ranks 14th for interceptions (9) among top-flight defenders. Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk only has one more.
- He comes in 11th for ground duels won (25), level with Crystal Palace star Marc Guehi.
- For total duels won (47), he’s ninth in the Premier League alongside Arsenal’s Jurrien Timber.
- Hume comes ninth for accurate crosses (5), level with Chelsea’s Reece James.
For a player in his first Premier League season, to see Hume alongside the likes of Tarkowski, van Dijk, Guehi, Timber and James speaks volumes about how good this guy actually is.
But little has been said about him, outside of those who follow him closely for both Sunderland and Northern Ireland.
Speaking earlier this month as Hume scored in Northern Ireland’s win over Slovakia in World Cup qualifying, Stuart Dallas and David Healy raved about the Sunderland right-back.
“The finish from Trai Hume was incredible, and it was at the point of the game when you needed a goal to calm everyone down,” said Dallas on BBC Two NI.
Healy added: “Trai Hume is an incredible young man. He doesn’t get too high or too low, and he has worked extremely hard on his game.”
Ultimately, Sunderland fans don’t want to hear Hume getting too much praise. Premier League scouts don’t look at what pundits are saying on Match of the Day or what fans are saying online when judging who to recommend their clubs to buy, but still.
However, if I’m going to be realistic here, Hume is a huge financial asset for Sunderland and the longer the Black Cats stay in the Premier League, the more that PSR is going to become a thing for them.
Hume arrived at Sunderland as an unknown quantity, much like Le Bris.
And much like Le Bris, the right-back is likely someone who Mackems need to enjoy while they can.
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