Ligue 1 Side Join Race For Eliezer Mayenda as Striker's Sunderland Exit Looms

Eliezer Mayenda appears set to depart Sunderland in the summer transfer window, with Ligue 1 giants Rennes reportedly pushing to sign him, according to French outlet Foot Mercato.

In the Championship campaign following Regis Le Bris’ arrival in the summer of 2024, young forward Mayenda cemented himself as one of the most important players in his Black Cats squad, playing a crucial role in the historic promotion. 

Mayenda netted the equaliser against Sheffield United in the Wembley showpiece to set Sunderland on course for an imperative victory courtesy Tommy Watson’s injury-time winner, which was the Spaniard’s 15th direct goal involvement of the 2024/25 campaign. 

Unfortunately for Mayenda, upon promotion to the Premier League, his gametime in the red-and-white stripes was sufficiently decreased, seeing the Spanish youth international make just eight starts in the top flight and scoring twice. 

Interestly, the Sochaux academy product scored the Black Cats’ first goal of the 2025/26 Premier League campaign with his deft header in the 3-0 hammering of West Ham United on opening day.

As a result of the emergence of Brian Brobbey - who bagged a brace for the Netherlands in the World Cup this week - as Le Bris’ first-choice starting striker, Mayenda has enjoyed 60 percent of his Premier League appearances this season coming from the Sunderland substitutes bench.

Given that the 21-year-old is in the crucial development years and has already proven himself to be an exciting talent, reports emerged recently that Mayenda’s preference is understood to be to move on from Sunderland in search of more regular football.

Therefore, it is no surprise that several European outfits have been linked with moves for the Spaniard, and now Ligue 1 giants Rennes have emerged as potential suitors for the Sunderland hero.

On paper and on the pitch, Mayenda is an extremely promising talent, with his combination of incredible close-dribbling ability and athleticism creating a difficult task for defenders to contend with.

Additionally, Mayenda’s versatility makes him a comfortable operator both as a centre-forward or right-winger, which bodes well for squad depth. 

Given his charismatic off-pitch character, imperative goals in Sunderland’s renaissance, and his chant regarding a certain Newcastle United supporting musician, it would be an emotional farewell for the Black Cats faithful and Mayenda. 

With the Spaniard under contract until June 2030, and given his proven abilities and potential to develop even further, this means that Sunderland could command a sizeable fee for his signature this summer.

However, that certainly would not mitigate the sadness from the Sunderland faithful at seeing the “big man” move on from Wearside after an extremely impactful three-year stint.