Alexandre Mendy 'will not give up' on Sunderland move as Black Cats increase offer

Sunderland finally appear to be heading for a happy ending in their pursuit of Alexandre Mendy, with the player reiterating his determination to move to Wearside.

Alexandre Mendy - wants Sunderland move / IMAGO / PanoramiC

Alexandre Mendy remains singularly determined to join Sunderland this summer, his agent Yacine Ayad has said.

Mendy to Sunderland has turned into something of a summer transfer saga, and one that the Black Cats really could have done without.

They thought they had agreed a deal with Caen early in the summer, with the then President of Caen, Olivier Pickeu, promising the player he would be allowed to leave.

However, the French club were then taken over and new owners, the family of France and Real Madrid star, Kylian Mbappe, blocked the deal and reneged on their promise to Mendy.

That produced a stand-off between player and club, while Sunderland were left stranded high and dry between the two parties.

However, just as Caen did initially, Sunderland had also made commitments to Mendy that they did not want to break, especially with the player going out on such a limb in a bid to join the club.

Reports from France claim Sunderland have now upped their bid for Mendy to around £2m and the expectation is now that the deal will happen relatively quickly.

And, as they have done all summer, Mendy’s camp have been quick to publicly state the 30-year-old’s unrelenting desire to join Sunderland, despite reported late interest from Italian clubs Lecce, Sampdoria, and Salernitana.

Exclu FM : où en est le dossier Alexandre Mendy ? 🔴⚪️🇬🇼 #Championship #SMCaen

▪️l’entourage d’Alexandre Mendy espère un dénouement rapide et compte sur la nouvelle direction du SM Caen pour finaliser le deal
▪️Sunderland a augmenté son offre initiale (montant compris entre 2… pic.twitter.com/6UuoUFUBQK

— Josué Cassé (@CasseJosue) August 20, 2024

“Alex is still determined to join Sunderland,” Ayad told FootMercato. “There are about ten days left, we will not give up, our determination is intact. We remain positive and we are counting on the new management to unblock this situation.”

Ayad has also clarified where Mendy is in terms of his fitness and training at the moment, and he says reports earlier in the summer that he had returned to full training with Caen were false.

"Currently, Alex is training separately, contrary to what the press wanted to show. He is irreproachable in his work and in his investment."