The eye-catching £10m ace Sunderland could sign in January - without spending a single penny

Sunderland have adapted well to life back in the Premier League. Regis Le Bris’ side were promoted from the Championship earlier this year along with Leeds United and Burnley. The Black Cats have made the step up well and there is a feel good factor around the Stadium of Light at the moment.

Le Bris was appointed back in the summer of 2024 and arrived in England as a bit of an unknown quantity. Prior to his move to the North East, he spent time in his native France with FC Lorient. His team beat Sheffield United 2-1 in the play-off final at Wembley back in May courtesy of a last-gasp Tommy Watson winner.

Sunderland should swoop for Luca Netz

Sunderland have two left-back over the age of 30 in Arthur Masuaku and Reinildo Mandava. Meanwhile, Dennis Cirkin is out injured and has struggled to keep fit. Therefore, they need to start thinking about long-term options in that position.

Step forward Borussia Monchengladbach’s Luca Netz, who is facing an uncertain future in the Bundesliga. He is out of contract at the end of the season and is due to become a free agent as things stand. The defender is yet to put pen-to-paper on an extension with his current club and they risk losing him for nothing as things stand.

Netz, 22, has bags of potential and would fit the bill for the Black Cats. He is someone who likes to get up and down his flank of defence. He has a wicked left foot and likes to chip in with both goals and assists from the back.

Sunderland have been shrewd with their incoming business since their return from the second tier. They have mainly opted for younger players who they can help grow and develop, blended in with more experienced heads like Granit Xhaka, Omar Alderete and Masuaku. Netz would tick most boxes for their recruitment department and a deal would make perfect sense.

Why would Luca Netz would suit Sunderland?

If he joined Sunderland, Netz would give them more competition and depth at the back. He would give Le Bris something different to call upon on his side. In addition, he will only get better over the next few years and will benefit from playing with stronger players.

Now is the perfect time for him to test himself in a new country. A transfer to England would get him out of his comfort zone. In addition, this is an extremely exciting time to join the Black Cats and they are on the rise.

Bild claimed in the last window that ‘several’ unnamed English teams were keen on Netz. Lazio were also linked and his price tag was said to be around the £10million mark. Arsenal, Manchester United, Newcastle United and Chelsea were credited with an interest by HITC Sport back in March 2024 but nothing materialised on that front in the end.

Netz rose up through the academy ranks at Hertha Berlin and was a regular at various different youth levels. He went on to play 11 matches for their first-team as a youngster and scored two goals. Gladbach then lured him away from the capital in 2021.

He immediately became an important player and has since become one of their most valuable assets. The Berlin-born man has made 111 appearances in all competitions to date and has found the net on three occasions. It is yet to be known at this stage whether he will still be there come next term though and Sunderland should try and pounce for him before other teams learn about his soon-to-be availability.