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Sunderland signed Pierre Ekwah from West Ham for no up-front cost, although there are a number of clauses in the deal.

While the fee was officially reported as ‘undisclosed,’ West Ham site Six Foot Two have revealed that it was actually a free transfer – initially at least.

The Hammers will get 25% of any future transfer fee, and there are also some payments to be met should Ekwah hit a certain amount of appearances for Sunderland

Ekwah has been highly rated all the way through his youth career, attending the prestigious Clairefontaine academy in France before joining Chelsea as a 16-year-old.

However, according to the report, the opinion of David Moyes and the West Ham academy staff was that he was never going to force his way into the Hammers’ first-team plans, so it was best to let him try to forge a path elsewhere.

Certainly, Ekwah himself expressed frustration at a lack of opportunities and ‘trust’ at West Ham, citing it as a key reason for deciding to join Sunderland.

“It's really nice to see a club still doing that... still trusting young players,” Ekwah said. “It's not just one or two, it's a lot of young players, so I think it's really good.


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“It's really good for football to move forward and for the long-term journey to where we want to go. I think it's a big thing for us.

“I think Sunderland is a great set-up now, with the gaffer (Tony Mowbray) and the whole board. I think it's a great set-up for young players to come and develop themselves and they give time and encouragement to young players to come and play their game.

“So I think it's just a perfect club for me, a perfect environment for me to progress as a man and as a player and develop my game in men's football.”

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