Ian Poveda reveals key reason for choosing Sunderland amid Sheffield Wednesday links | OneFootball

The winger elected to not head back to Hillsborough and instead go to the Stadium of Light.

Ian Poveda has revealed that Sunderland's sporting director, Kristjaan Speakman, and head of recruitment, Stuart Harvey, were pivotal in getting him to join the club, in the face of interest from Sheffield Wednesday.

The Black Cats made a successful attempt to hijack Sheffield Wednesday's deal to sign the Colombian winger. He has penned a four-year deal with Sunderland, after much speculation about his future.

The Northern Echo reported that they were going to try and make a daring move for the former Leeds United man, who joined the Whites from Manchester City in 2020.

The first clear sign that they'd been successful in their attempts was when an image surfaced on social media of the player standing outside the Academy of Light, with the club's new home top on and a scarf in his hand, getting his picture taken.

Last night, the deal was confirmed, and Poveda was officially announced as the newest member of Regis Le Bris' side.

Sunderland hierarchy was a decisive factor in Ian Poveda's decision to join the club

The 24-year-old said, when speaking to the Black Cats' media team, that two of the higher-ups at the Stadium of Light played a huge role in getting him to move to the northeast.

He said: "The move came through Stuart Harvey, head of recruitment, and I just feel like the love behind the club, through Kristjaan [Speakman] and Stuart himself, the manager.

"I've also known Stuart English [head of coaching] from a really young age - when I was about 15 - I feel like I have the right people supporting me and just wanting the best for me.

"The love that I had, especially from Stuart Harvey, that is just something I can't really describe. All I want to do is get on the pitch and play for Sunderland. The stadium, the fans, I've played here a couple of times - I've seen how full it gets and how the fans get behind the team.

"I feel good and I just want to help the club restore its glory. I don't feel like we should be in the Championship and I fully believe the project. So here I am."

At one point, the most likely destination for Poveda looked to be a return to Hillsborough. He'd spent the latter half of last season on loan at Sheffield Wednesday, and manager Danny Rohl was keen to have him back, as per the Star.

However, shortly before Sunderland launched their move for him, the manager revealed that the Owls and Poveda's camp weren't entirely aligned in negotiations.

The key to Ian Poveda's success at Sunderland

Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Joe Donnohue told the Sunderland Echo that consistency was always an issue for the winger during his time at Elland Road. They and Wednesday supporters alike would have been able to see the talent that he has, but he hasn't been able to consistently knit it all together.

Poveda isn't coming into Le Bris' team as a guaranteed starter, which should hopefully push him to become better and more consistent, because of the competition that he is likely to face from the likes of Patrick Roberts, Abdoullah Ba, Romain Mundle and others.