Sunderland line up Mikautadze deal as approaches made amid ‘£200m earthquake’
Sunderland are reportedly in the hunt to sign Lyon star Georges Mikautadze.
The 24-year-old Georgia international was in fine form for Lyon last season as he scored 17 goals and supplied 11 assists in 47 appearances across all competitions.
Sunderland’s promotion to the Premier League has led to a huge buzz of transfer speculation in recent weeks, with Regis Le Bris set to use his new funds to add to the squad.
Relegation back to the Championship is, unfortunately, a major possibility for the Black Cats next season, so signing players like Mikautadze is a must.
Lyon receive approaches for Mikautadze as Sunderland credited with interest
Mikautadze fired in goals against strong sides like Paris Saint-Germain, Stade Rennais and Strasbourg last term while also scoring three goals in four games at the European Championships in Germany last year.
The Lyon-born Georgian scored against Turkey, Czechia and Portugal to help his nation qualify for the knock-out stages, where they lost to eventual champions Spain.
| Appearances | Goals | |
| Metz (two spells) | 64 | 38 |
| Seraing | 57 | 36 |
| Ajax | 9 | 0 |
| Lyon | 47 | 17 |
| Georgia | 37 | 20 |
He’s now reportedly a target for Sunderland, with Foot Mercato reporting on 30 June that their “English sources” assure them the Wearsiders are keen on a deal.
It is understood that “several approaches” have already been made for Mikautadze this summer, with Eintracht Frankfurt and clubs in Turkey and Saudi Arabia also interested in signing him.
Lyon in dire straits after relegation from Ligue 1
And that’s no shock because the French football authorities have relegated Lyon to Ligue 2 due to the state of their finances.
French football expert Julien Laurens told Sky Sports News in June that “this news was a massive earthquake in French football because we all thought and understood that Lyon would be okay”.
Last November, the French giants, who are owned by John Textor, amassed a debt of around £200million.
While they have sold Rayan Cherki to Manchester City for £34million, that’s barely a drop in the ocean as they’re now in a position where their income is going to be absolutely crippled.
Lyon have appealed against the decision to relegate them to the second tier, but the fact remains that their financial situation is atrocious and players like Mikautadze are there for the taking for clubs like Sunderland, who have no PSR concerns and have the new riches of the Premier League to play with.
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