Hjelde and Masuaku ‘to leave’ as Florent Ghisolfi reshapes Sunderland squad | OneFootball

According to Sunderland Echo, Sunderland are close to sanctioning permanent exits for Leo Hjelde and Arthur Masuaku as Florent Ghisolfi reshapes Régis Le Bris’ squad.

Hjelde is set to join KV Mechelen on a four-year deal, with a sell-on clause expected. Masuaku is poised to move to Konyaspor in Türkiye after a previous attempt collapsed, with the reshaping coming ahead of new Premier League and Europa League campaigns.

Hjelde, 22, arrived from Leeds United in January 2024 and featured in the promotion-winning run before spending the second half of last season on loan at Sheffield United. With competition intensifying, a permanent switch to Belgium offers a clearer route to regular minutes.

Masuaku is due to travel to Türkiye on Monday for a medical before completing the transfer. The DR Congo international joined on a free from Besiktas last summer, struggled for game time, then spent the second half of the campaign on loan at RC Lens. He returned but did not feature in either squad that faced Lens in France on Saturday.

The likely departures would further thin Sunderland’s left-sided defensive options as Ghisolfi targets reinforcements. Toulouse youngster Dayann Methalie remains a significant target, with interest also credited in Sassuolo and Scotland left-back Josh Doig.

Source: Sunderland Echo

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”