Sunderland Plot Geny Catamo Transfer Plan To Beat Newcastle and Leeds To £29.3m Deal

Sunderland remain keen on signing Sporting CP winger Geny Catamo in the January transfer window after several failed bids in the summer, with Newcastle United and Leeds United also interested in the right forward.

According to journalist Sacha Tavolieri, Sunderland still have "high hopes" of signing Catamo in the mid-season window after lengthy links with the Mozambique international over the summer transfer window, but now are not willing to pay more than €35m/£29.3m to pry him from the Portuguese giants in January.

In the summer, Sunderland made several bids to sign Catamo and were reportedly prepared to offer as high as €40m/£33.5m, but Sporting stood firm and demanded that the Stadium of Light hierarchy meet the winger's €60m/£50m contractual release clause.

Now, it remains to be seen whether Sunderland chairman Kyril Louis-Dreyfus will relinquish the funds in the upcoming mid-season transfer window to sign the Sporting star, and whether the Portuguese top flight club's hierarchy will sanction an exit.

Unfortunately, the Stadium of Light transfer team must act fast on Catamo, with the likes of arch-rivals Newcastle, as well as Leeds, Everton, Bournemouth, and Brentford, all reportedly keeping a keen eye on the pacey wideman.

Reporter Tavolieri adds that "several internal meetings are still needed" at Sunderland "to determine if a new bid will be launched", but it seems clear that Catamo is still at the top of the Black Cats' transfer shortlist, and it is clear to see why.

In terms of Catamo's profile, he is precisely the calibre and type of player that Sunderland are currently crying out for, and one Regis Le Bris needed before the season began: a left-footed right winger with an eye for goal and for creating chances.

So far this season at Sporting, Catamo has been in fine form as Sunderland and several of their Premier League rivals track his performances ahead of January, with the 25-year-old showcasing precisely why there is such interest in his signature.

Catamo has scored twice and registered four assists in the opening 12 games of Sporting's season, with one of those goals coming in the 3-1 Champions League win against Galatasaray, in which he fired a composed and emphatic equaliser with a low finish into the bottom corner after ghosting into the Galatasaray box from the right flank.

His proven record for goals, assists and chance creation, combined with his pace and technical ability, would make the Sporting winger a nightmare for Premier League defences to contend with, and would also make Catamo the ideal signing for Sunderland given that no player within Le Bris' squad currently possesses his profile.

The Black Cats boss is well-stocked for right-footed options on the left side of attack, with £30.8m summer signing Malick Fofana, Nilson Angulo, who was outstanding for Sunderland in the draw against Leeds, and Chemsdine Talbi following his return to action on Sunday after weeks on the bench. 

If Sunderland can win the transfer battle for Catamo and add his exciting talents to their right flank, given their need to enhance attacking output from the right wing, then this could be the missing piece of the puzzle for the Black Cats' attack.

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