How is ex-Sunderland AFC and Birmingham City star Alex Pritchard getting on? | OneFootball

FLW takes a look at how Alex Pritchard has been getting on since leaving Sunderland at the end of last season.

Alex Pritchard left Birmingham City during the summer having only joined the club from Sunderland in the January transfer window, but he seems to have found his feet fairly quickly at his new club, Sivasspor.

Alex Pritchard has played regularly in the EFL for a number of clubs over the last decade, including Brentford and Norwich City, as well as featuring in the Premier League for West Bromwich Albion and Huddersfield Town.

The midfielder, who started his career at Tottenham Hotspur, spent the first half of last season at Sunderland before he joined Tony Mowbray at Birmingham City for an undisclosed fee at the end of the January transfer window.

Pritchard made nine appearances during his time at the Blues, but he could not prevent the club from dropping into League One on the last day of the season, despite helping his side to a victory over his former club Norwich on the final matchday.

The 31-year-old left St Andrew's during the summer, less than six months after his arrival in the Midlands, to sign for Turkish Süper Lig side Sivasspor on a two-year deal.

How is Alex Pritchard getting on in Turkey?

Pritchard had been a transfer target for Sivasspor prior to his move to Birmingham, so it was not a huge surprise when he left English football for the first time in his career and made the move to Turkey during the summer.

The playmaker discussed his move with Birmingham Live, explaining that the time had come for a new challenge.

"I've got to the stage of my career where it's time for a new beginning, a different place, a different culture," said Pritchard.

"I've looked closely at this league throughout the years and I can say it's just getting stronger. This club has made a lot of effort to bring me here so I will do my utmost to repay them."

It would be fair to say that Pritchard has made a respectable start to life at Sivasspor, after the club showed their faith in his ability by handing him the number 10 shirt after finally securing his signature.

He has been a regular starter for Sivasspor so far this season, and provided assists in their victories over Kayserispor and Gaziantep FK, as he has helped his side make a decent start to the 2024/25 campaign.

After starting in Sivasspor's defeat at the Besiktas Stadium at the beginning of September, Pritchard will no doubt be looking forward to coming up against the other giants of Turkish football, Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray, later in the season.

Sunderland fans may keep an eye on Alex Pritchard

While Pritchard's time at the Stadium of Light did not end how anyone would have wanted it to, with him withdrawing from the Black Cats' squad to face Stoke City in January this year in an attempt to force through a move, he did make a reasonable impact during his time on Wearside.

He made 17 goal contributions during the 2021/22 season as Sunderland won promotion back to the Championship via the play-offs, before providing another 11 goals and assists the following season as his side finished inside the top six in the second tier.

The midfielder uploaded a heartfelt message on Instagram when he left Sunderland earlier this year, and some of the supporters may be hoping to see him do well at his new club.