Youngster explains why he joined Sunderland; Black Cats earn 'very good team' praise

Edouard Michut has explained that he has come to Sunderland to 'thrive' after appearing on French television to explain why he left Paris Saint-Germain.

Sunderland pulled off something of a coup when they snapped up the highly-rated 19-year-old on an initial loan deal with an option for a permanent transfer.

He has already made his breakthrough with PSG and was tipped to push for a first-team role in the coming months, but a fallout with new boss Christophe Galtier saw him head to the exit instead.

Speaking to Telefoot, Michut said: “My departure from PSG? I needed a new challenge and to thrive as much as possible by having playing time."

Michut has made just one appearance for Sunderland so far, although he could get an opportunity this week with captain Corry Evans suspended for the visit of Wigan.

Uruguayan links emerging

As reported last week, Sunderland owners Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and Juan Sartori have been in South America attempting to widen the club's reach.

That has seen them take in a match in Argentina and visit the Uruguayan FA. They have now also held talks with the two major Uruguayan clubs, Panarol and Nacional.

"This week a delegation from the Sunderland AFC led by its President Kyril Louis-Dreyfus met with President José Fuentes to explore cooperation agreements," Nacional said on their official club Twitter account alongside a picture of Louis Dreyfus handing over a Sunderland shirt.

Esta semana una delegación del @SunderlandAFC encabezada por su presidente Kyril Louis-Dreyfus se reunió con el presidente José Fuentes para explorar acuerdos de cooperación. 🤝🏼 Anoche todos estuvieron presentes en el Gran Parque Central #ElClubGigante 🔵⚪️🔴 pic.twitter.com/fzIFrhWzXl
— Nacional (@Nacional) October 9, 2022

Meanwhile, Panarol said something very similar, tweeting: "The president of Sunderland AFC Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, led an institutional visit to the Champion of the Century this weekend and held meetings with Peñarol authorities, strengthening ties between both institutions."

Juan Sartori has held the ambition for a link-up between Sunderland and Uruguayan football for some time, so it remains to be seen what, if anything, actually emerges from these talks.

Sunderland 'a really good team'

Sunderland did not away from Swansea with any points, but they did at least earn the praise of Russell Martin.

The Black Cats were far from their best and sank to a disappointing 2-1 defeat, but the Swans boss was at least impressed.

"They are really good team, by the way, I really like them, Sunderland, and the way they play," said Martin.

"Alex Pritchard - I didn't enjoy watching him today but I've played with him and he is an excellent player. They've got some really good players and they will cause a lot of teams problems this year, with the energy they have."

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