Sunderland to copy Leeds United template as worst-case scenario laid out
Sunderland have made the headlines this summer with their jaw-dropping spending on Wearside.
The Black Cats broke their transfer record twice, with Enzo Le Fee and then Habib Diarra arriving for £30million at the Stadium of Light.
Sunderland have already spent well north of £100m, and there could be more arrivals before the deadline.
While particular attention has been paid to transfer fees, not so much light has been shed on wages and contracts.
This story includes exclusive comment from football finance expert Dr Daniel Plumley.
Do Sunderland have to pay higher wages to secure signings?
Sunderland signed Granit Xhaka from Bayer Leverkusen in one of the most eye-catching transfers of the summer.
Indeed, the Swiss international was on around £70,000 a week while with the German outfit, and may be on even more now.
Football finance expert Dan Plumley has provided insight into the Wearsiders’ wages and what they could mean.
“Yes, definitely, it’s perhaps what the media doesn’t focus on as much,” he exclusively told Mackem News when asked if Sunderland would have to pay higher wages to get deals over the line.
“We look at transfer fees and total spend and net spend, but we don’t focus so much perhaps on the wage cost, and those players do also come with a wage premium.
“That’s where I’d be looking at it, going the other way and planning for that worst-case scenario, and we saw Leeds do this a couple of years ago, other clubs have done it in the past, more clubs are now doing it, which is good.
- Sunderland’s play-off winning team was assembled for around £8m
- The Black Cats ended an eight-year wait to return to the top table
- They have spent more than the other promoted teams
“But you’ve got to have some sort of wage reduction clauses in those contracts linked to relegation or an opportunity for the player to move on if it doesn’t work out, etc.
“So I’d be hoping that those things are built in, because if you are going to increase your wage bill, that’s okay on Premier League money, but you’re going to lose some of that money if you get relegated, of course, so it’s got to work both ways.
“And yes, those players will be on higher wages, but I’d be wanting to see, and I’m pretty sure it will be in most of these contracts nowadays, but you want some wage reduction clauses in there so that you can lower the cost as well if the worst-case scenario happens.”
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Kyril Louis-Dreyfus knows what he is doing at Stadium of light
Louis-Dreyfus is the man responsible for spending at the Stadium of Light.
The 28-year-old, who became the youngest chairman in English football in 2021, played a pivotal role in Xhaka signing for the Black Cats.
During his tenure, he has overseen a sensible but calculated stint in the North East, which paid dividends last season.
This summer, he has spent substantially more than ever before, but he would not have done so carelessly.
While he has aspirations to survive in the Premier League, he is savvy enough to have prepared contracts that do not hurt Sunderland in the future.
In Louis-Dreyfus, the Black Cats are in safe hands, whether they are relegated or not.
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