Sunderland have plenty of gaps to plug in the team this summer, with a new central midfielder looking like a key area.
Going into the summer, Sunderland will have two clear priorities; hiring a new manager and signing a prolific striker.
But after that, there’s plenty of other areas that Sunderland need to address with a new central midfielder following closely behind the need for a striker.
Sunderland have had to rely heavily on Dan Neil and Pierre Ekwah this season.
Neil’s recent injury has shone a light on the sheer lack of depth in that position with Jobe Bellingham having had to drop down from striker to central midfielder.
And with Corry Evans set to leave as a free agent in the summer, as things stand anyway, Sunderland’s already-depleted midfield department will become even more so.
But the Black Cats could unearth a new gem if they plot a summer move for Cardiff City’s unwanted midfielder Ebou Adams.
Who is Ebou Adams
Adams, 28, is a central midfielder playing on loan for Derby County from Cardiff City, and also representing the Gambian national team having played at AFCON this season.
The former Forest Green Rovers man endured a tough maiden season at Cardiff last time round with injury preventing him from kicking on.
But with Derby County this season, he’s been ‘outstanding’, as per Derbyshire Live reporter Leigh Curtis, and Rams fans adore the combative midfielder.
He joined on loan in January and has since featured 17 times in League One, scoring once and assisting once.
He’s a defensive midfielder who has a very similar playing style to Ekwah in that he’s a player who can just glide across the pitch, forward and backwards, though Adams certainly seems to be a more defensive-minded player.
And the stats show just how formidable Adams has been for Derby on their way to promotion from League One this season; per Sofascore, Adams has averaged 0.9 interceptions, 2.8 tackles, and 1.2 clearances per game.
To put that into some context, Evans during Sunderland’s promotion-winning 2021/22 campaign averaged 1.3 interceptions but just 1.3 tackles and 0.9 clearances.
Adams’ most impressive statistic though is balls recovered per game, which he averages 5.1 of for Derby County.
Can Sunderland realistically sign Ebou Adams from Cardiff City
Derby are already in talks to sign Adams.
It’s been revealed this week that Derby are launching a £250,000 bid to bring Adams back to Pride Park on a permanent basis, though Cardiff want £500,000.
And whilst Sunderland are one of the more stringent teams in the division, if they sell the likes of Jack Clarke this summer and hire an out of work manager, then there should be at least some kind of funding available for player purchases.
So £500,000 for Adams certainly seems doable.
And he’d plug a huge gap in the middle of the park with no current Sunderland player, barring Evans maybe, able to effectively play that defensive midfield role and provide the necessary steel in front of the defence.
Adams does that and more; he’s a really energetic player and he’s shown that in his Derby performances, playing a hugely important role in getting them over the line.
He’ll surely want another crack at the Championship after his failed Cardiff move and it looks like he’ll get that; either with Derby or another team.
The Rams may have the first say on Adams given the fact that they’ve had him on loan, though they could yet be priced out.
Speakman could pull off a really shrewd summer signing if he brings in Adams on a bargain deal this summer, and it could help the likes of Ekwah to really up his game and start to fulfil his own potential after a mixed season.