Sunderland and Burnley Battle Marseille for 32-Goal Striker, Fee Nears £17m

Sunderland will have a busy summer in terms of signings. It’s only June, and rumors of potential transfers continue to multiply.

A few hours ago, we told you about the Black Cats’ interest in signing Atletico Madrid defender Reinildo (31), for whom they will face competition from Leeds United, as well as clubs from Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

Additionally, yesterday we reported that Sunderland are also eyeing Aston Villa defender Alex Moreno (32), who has also attracted interest from Burnley.

Either way, the backline isn’t the only area the Lads’ board plans to strengthen, as they have also been linked to a talented French striker in recent hours.

Sunderland to battle Burnley for French forward Matthis Abline

According to Sacha Tavolieri, Sunderland have shown interest in signing 22-year-old striker Matthis Abline, who plays for Ligue 1 side FC Nantes.

However, this operation won’t be easy for the Stadium of Light residents, as they would face both domestic and foreign competition.

The aforementioned journalist details that Abline is also wanted by Burnley, recently promoted to the Premier League, and Brentford.

But beyond that, the young attacker has also received inquiries from Olympique de Marseille and Paris FC, the latter of which was just promoted to the French top flight.

Previously, Marseille’s main obstacle was the price set by Nantes, who demanded €20 million to let him go, roughly £17 million.

While this figure seems high for any French club except Paris Saint-Germain, considering he’s still a young player, Sunderland could indeed invest that amount.

It’s worth remembering that the Lads earned around £200 million from their promotion to the Premier League, so it wouldn’t be crazy to think they’ll use part of that money to sign players.

Throughout his career, Matthis Abline has scored 32 goals and provided 11 assists across all his clubs and divisions, according to Transfermarkt.

During the 2024-25 season, Abline appeared a total of 36 times for Nantes, registering 11 goals and two assists across Ligue 1 and Coupe de France.

We'll see whether the French forward prefers to continue his development in his home country or if he prioritizes making the jump to a competition of Premier League caliber.

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