Sunderland fans must have breathed a huge sigh of relief after the curtains of the summer transfer window fell. Although the Black Cats did sign some quality players in the shapes of James Vaughan, Jason Steele, Lewis Grabban and Brendan Galloway, managing to ensure that their blossoming midfielder Didier Ndong was kept at the Stadium of Light held paramount importance. It was indeed a huge psychological win for them as he Ndong is indeed a player of fine calibre.
During the summer transfer window, Ndong was heavily linked with a move to West Ham United to enhance the overall quality of Slaven Bilic’s side after their disappointing start to their Premier League campaign this season. However, any sort of a conclusion wasn’t agreed upon by both the sides involved. After their demotion to the Championship last season, it was implied that Sunderland’s key players were going to fall on the radar of many top quality sides. But Simon Grayson succeeded in staying averse to a catastrophe.
The 23-year-old has started the season in a fine manner this time around as well as in 5 Championship appearances so far, he has made 3.8 tackles, 2.8 interceptions and 2 clearances. He is a prized asset at Sunderland and no wonder why his invigorating performances are ensuring the rapid rise of his stocks.
Grayson’s men have collected merely 5 points so far from their 5 outings and are placed 19th in the league table and with the financial must which the Hammers possess, they are likely to pounce upon Ndong in the near future.
Ndong started his career with the Tunisian outfit CS Sfaxien and his fine run of form prompted the French outfit Lorient in making him sign on the dotted line in the January transfer window of 2015. He subsequently moved to the ranks of Sunderland last summer for a club record signing of £13.6million last summer and put forth strong performances last season in the English top division, although he failed to keep his employers away from the relegation zone.
The Gabon international is powerful, quick and mobile and despite not having a daunting figure, he doesn’t refrain from getting into tight circumstances. He toils relentlessly throughout the pitch and does the dirty work in the middle of the park. Apart from cushioning the back line meticulously, Ndong also creates ample amount of chances and knits the team together and he is someone Grayson cannot afford to lose anytime soon.
Statistics Credits: WhoScored.com
