Regis Le Bris’ bold pre-season message – and thoughts on Sunderland’s signings…
REGIS LE BRIS claims Sunderland’s ongoing spending spree reflects the extent of the club’s ambition – and is confident the Black Cats have signed players who will willingly buy in to what he is trying to build on Wearside.
With Chemsdine Talbi’s move from Club Brugge having been confirmed yesterday, Simon Adingra is set to become Sunderland’s sixth summer signing when he completes an anticipated £20.5m move from Brighton within the next 24 hours.
By the time Adingra’s move is finalised, Sunderland will have spent more than £100m since winning promotion in the play-off final in May.
Such a major outlay reflects both the need to improve the squad that finished fourth in the regular Championship season last term, and the willingness of the Black Cats’ owners to invest as heavily as possible in order to continue growing the club.
With all of Sunderland’s summer signings having had alternative options, it also underlines the extent to which the club’s external reputation has been transformed in the last few years.
“I am happy because we needed to reinforce the squad,” said Le Bris, who will oversee Sunderland’s opening two pre-season friendlies this weekend, with the first-team squad set to be split for games at Gateshead and South Shields.
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“The players who decided to join Sunderland had multiple choices. But finally, they decided to join Sunderland even with the same offer for many other clubs. That means they are convinced by the energy of the project.
“I think we are clear in the way we want to recruit and the way we want to work. I think the owner, and the whole club, are showing their ambition. It is not just about surviving, we want to be competitive in this league, with the identity of Sunderland.”
Retaining and reinforcing that identity was one of Le Bris’ key considerations this summer, and the Black Cats boss is confident the recent wave of recruits will not disrupt the unity and sense of common purpose that helped drive his team on last season.
“I think it’s important to keep the identity,” he said, in an interview with Sky Sports. “When you recruit many people, the risk is to have multiple voices and probably multiple motivations. The way you can have the same message, to be efficient, is really important.
“Football is about playing, the game, but it is about hard work as well. I think our players, and people in the building, are really aware about the work you need to do. Then, the pleasure is at the end, as was the case last season at Wembley.”
Sunderland kick off their new Premier League campaign when they host West Ham on August 16, and while Le Bris has been delighted with the quality of this summer’s rebuilding work so far, he is also under no illusions about the scale of the task that is facing his side.
“We expect a huge change because we will play in the best league in the world, with the best players and the best coaches,” he said. “We will have to lift our standards everywhere.
“That means for me, for the staff, for all the people in the building, and exactly the same for the players. We can work with our pillars, and our foundation, and that is about our identity. And after that, we will see.”
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