Former Leeds United Defender Now Linked to Sunderland in Deal Worth Over €10M

Sunderland remain active in their search for defenders and are now reportedly interested in a 22-year-old familiar with English football.

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Nearly all recent rumors around Sunderland have to do with defenders, and it's normal considering the Black Cats are preparing to compete again in the Premier League.

One of the recent names that have been linked with the Lads is Cameron Carter-Vickers, a 27-year-old center-back who plays for Celtic and has sparked interest from several Premier League clubs.

Sunderland would also have in their sights Lyon and Croatia center-back Duje Caleta-Car (28), and Japhet Tanganga, a 26-year-old center-back who plays for Championship side Millwall.

Well, now the Black Cats have been linked with a Toulouse center-back who left Leeds United just one year ago.

Sunderland reportedly interested in Toulouse defender Charlie Cresswell

According to information from Jeunes Footeux (h/t The 72), Sunderland are interested in signing 22-year-old English center-back Charlie Cresswell, who plays for Ligue 1's Toulouse.

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The mentioned outlet explains that the interest isn't new, as in 2023, the Lads' board had already considered the possibility of signing him while he was on loan at Millwall.

Cresswell left English football just one year ago, when he departed Leeds in the summer of 2024, heading to Toulouse, in exchange for €4.5m.

For now, the young defender, according to specialized portal Transfermarkt, has a market value of €10m, that is, around £8.5m.

In any case, the report indicates that in case a transfer materializes, it would have to be for a figure higher than the market value estimated by the cited portal.

During the 2024-25 season, Cresswell accumulated 31 appearances in Ligue 1, starting in 29 of them, registering three goals, one assist, and nine clean sheets.

At the moment, the center-back is competing in the U21 European Championship with England, and has played two standout matches at an individual level, against the Czech Republic (1-3) and Slovenia (0-0).

Of course, it's early in the transfer window, and surely Sunderland will continue to be linked to more defenders. We must wait.