Kyril Louis-Dreyfus ‘pursued’ £17m Sunderland deal after Leeds United interest | OneFootball

Kyril Louis-Dreyfus moved to sign Eduard Spertsyan in a deal worth about £17m after earlier interest from Leeds United and Southampton. Sportaran reports that Sunderland contacted the midfielder’s family and were ready to offer around €20m to secure him.

Swiss agent Christoph Grafe is said to have fronted talks for Sunderland in May, although the club did not open direct negotiations with FC Krasnodar.

The pursuit was reported to have been hindered by circumstances unrelated to football, with no further detail given. Sunderland’s salary proposal was said to be well below the package Spertsyan later accepted in Saudi Arabia, yet it was not thought to have discouraged him from a move to the Stadium of Light.

Spertsyan impressed for Krasnodar last season, scoring 14 goals and supplying 18 assists in 42 appearances. He ultimately joined Al-Ahli earlier this month for €21m, around £18m, on a four-year contract.

Southampton made an offer last summer, but Krasnodar owner Sergey Galitsky blocked the transfer, prompting an angry reaction from Spertsyan’s representative. Leeds explored a deal in the winter window, but nothing materialised. The player later spoke publicly about missing out on both moves.

Source: Sunderland Echo