There haven't been any major stories, but here are a few SAFC-related stories to keep you up to date with the club’s activity; Some pre-season dates, an emotional parting message and more rumours of a returning loanee...
U-23 VISIT CANADA
Our under-23 squad have announced that they’ll go to Canada for games against CF Montreal Under-23s, Toronto FC II and New Brunswick All Stars. The young Black Cats are scheduled to play four games in eight days as they gear up for their upcoming Premier League 2 campaign.
They’ll begin with a 2pm local time kickoff against New Brunswick All Stars on Saturday 30 July. Then there will be a game on Wednesday 3 August against Toronto II, who compete as the MLS Pro affiliate of Toronto’s senior team. This game will kick off at 6:30pm local time.
In a strange situation, Sunderland’s lads will then play two games in the space of two days against the same opponents. The first of which is against CF Montreal on Friday 5 August, kicking off at 7pm local time. On the Sunday (7 August) both teams will travel to a new stadium to have a quickfire rematch, with the second match kicking off at 1pm local time.
Hopefully this news will be quickly followed by a pre-season update for the senior squad, who are going to Portugal but no one knows when or who against.
HOFFMANN SAYS GOODBYE
Ron-Thorben Hoffmann took to Instagram to send Sunderland supporters a final parting message, as he returns to Germany upon the end of his loan spell. Fellow countryman Leon Dajaku has signed for the Lads permanently, but it seems that Hoffmann didn’t reach the appearances required to join him.
“Dear SAFC supporters, I just wanted to say THANK YOU for everything you’ve done for me and for us as a team this season. It was such a crazy year but we finished the season with the promotion. I am proud that I played my part and helped the club to get out of that league. It was a big honour to wear the Sunderland shirt! From now on I will support the club on their way back to the top. All the best and a big big thank you again!”
He’s learnt from Manuel Neuer and showed great potential, and I’m sure he’ll be able to carve out a good career for himself somewhere. It’s a shame that it won’t be with us, but all the best for the future nonetheless.
CLARKE TO RETURN?
According to Spurs journo Alasdair Gold, Jack Clarke’s career is at a ‘crossroads’.
“I think it’s a crossroads summer for Clarke with his contract. Either the club extend his deal and send him back out on loan again after giving him a chance in pre-season to impress Conte or they look for someone to take him permanently. He did well at Sunderland and his stock will have risen, particularly with that eye-catching crucial semi-final second leg assist. Spurs often insert extra year options into young players’ contracts to give them a bit more security so it may well be that Clarke has one of those as well. If he does sign a new deal then it’s more likely that Spurs are ensuring they get a healthy fee if he impresses again on loan. At just 21, there’s still plenty of time for the young winger to salvage his Tottenham career but the sheer volume of players in front of him continue to make that difficult.”
He’s in the last year of his contract now, but the £10m move from Leeds hasn’t exactly gone to plan. He was the star of the show against Sheffield Wednesday, and now faces a decision which could shape his career.
Clearly a player with talent, Clarke had a brilliant end to the season with us and was the star of our semi-final win against Sheffield Wednesday. I’d like him to return- he’s proven he can do it at a higher level with Leeds a few years ago.
LJ ADMITS TO RULEBREAKING...
He’s only been at Hibs a few weeks, but he’s already made a controversial claim. He told the media that while at Bristol City and Sunderland, he made several illegal approaches to sign Hibs striker Kevin Nisbet...
"I probably illegally approached Kevin Nisbet four or five times! Kevin at his best he is a top player and one I've wanted to get hold of for a number of years. I think everyone's had a good look at Josh Doig too, a bright, up-and-coming player who now seems to be really experienced despite only being 20. It’s a real challenge to keep hold of players like that at a club like this because there is a lot of interest from big clubs. We are maybe short of players in their prime so it’s important we develop our assets.”
Johnson has a reputation for being over-zealous in front of the cameras, like when he assured us “we are not f*cking sh*t” after a 3-0 loss at Sheff Wed. Hopefully he learns not to let his mouth run and doesn’t end up getting himself into trouble...
