Chelsea Open to Sending Defender to Sunderland Amid Transfer Speculation

Apparently, the defense is one of the priority areas to reinforce for Sunderland facing the 2025-26 season, or at least that's what the most recent reports indicate.

In the last hours, it was reported that the Black Cats would look for the signing of Japhet Tanganga (26), Millwall center-back, for whom they would compete with Crystal Palace, Leeds United, and other clubs.

Besides, Sunderland have also just been linked with Olympique Lyonnais defender Duje Caleta-Car (28), who has been placed on the transferable list by the French club.

As if that weren't enough, the Lads have now been placed as a possible destination for a young Chelsea defender.

Sunderland linked to Chelsea defender Ishe Samuels-Smith

According to information from TEAMTalk (h/t Sunderland Echo), Sunderland are interested in signing on loan the 19-year-old Chelsea defender Ishe Samuels-Smith.

Furthermore, according to the cited outlet, Chelsea would be open to the possibility of sending their pupil on loan to the Stadium of Light, so the Black Cats would have an advantage in this case.

Specifically, the competition would come from the Championship, with Middlesbrough and QPR putting special attention on the jewel for whom the Blues paid £4m to Everton in 2023.

Samuels-Smith is described as a versatile defender who can play both as left-back and as center-back, so he's quite an interesting player.

That said, the cited outlet explains that the intention of Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca would be to send Ishe on temporary loan, with a view to incorporating him into the first team in the future.

Therefore, should this transfer be completed, regardless of Samuels-Smith doing well at Sunderland, the most probable would be that Chelsea don't put a purchase option in the agreement, and that they ask for him back when the loan ends.

Although the market value of the player, according to the Transfermarkt portal, sits at €700k, the reality is that a potential exit price could be much higher, considering the potential the player has. We'll see if a transfer materializes.

Read More: