Sunderland: Alexandre Mendy statement suggests Kyril Louis-Dreyfus may cost Black Cats - View | OneFootball

Alexandre Mendy is desperate to move to Sunderland, but Kyril Louis-Dreyfus' unwillingness to meet his asking price is delaying his move.

The Alexandre Mendy transfer saga continues, with the forward's latest statement providing another twist in the tale.

Sunderland's proposed move for Mendy has been the story of the summer at the Stadium of Light and shows no signs of ending any time soon. With the Black Cats' season due to start against Cardiff City this Saturday, the club are short of quality in front of goal.

The club's interest in SM Caen's Mendy was made clear a few weeks ago. The striker released a statement via French outlet, Foot Mercato, stating he had chosen to join Sunderland over a move to Saudi Arabia.

However, it was reported by Sport in Caen that the Black Cats' opening bid was under £1 million, which is well short of Caen's valuation of the player. Speaking exclusively with Football League World recently, France-based journalist Luke Entwistle claimed that a fee of between £3-4 million would be required to land Mendy.

Mendy's move was further scuppered when it was revealed by Foot Mercato that Kylian Mbappe's purchase of Caen was seemingly holding up the move. The French outlet claimed that the Real Madrid player wanted to speak with Mendy to convince him to stay.

While it appeared the deal had gone quiet, Mendy released another statement via Foot Mercato on Saturday, clearly reiterating his intention to leave. In his statement, Mendy said: "My decision was made in January and since June my destination has been known."

Despite Mendy's statements, a deal is yet to have been agreed between the two clubs, and it remains to be seen whether Kyril Louis-Dreyfus will break his transfer record.

Louis-Dreyfus' unwillingness to spend could cost Black Cats

Since Louis-Dreyfus' arrival at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland's transfer strategy has been careful and considered. For years, the club had misspent on players, paying the price for their ill-thought decisions and Louis-Dreyfus will not make the same mistakes.

The deadline day signing of Will Grigg from Wigan Athletic for £4 million is the prime example of wasted millions. The club's hit Netflix documentary series 'Sunderland 'Til I Die' portrayed then owner, Stewart Donald's, desperate attempt at signing a striker, who ultimately failed in the North East.

The Northern Irishman eventually left on a free transfer to MK Dons, having scored eight goals in 62 appearances for the Black Cats.

Clearly, Louis-Dreyfus does not want to make the same mistakes as his predecessor, but his unwillingness to pay the price for Mendy could be extremely costly for his lofty ambitions at Sunderland.

The club have failed to fill the void left by prolific forward, Ross Stewart, who was sold in the summer of 2023 to then Championship rivals, Southampton. Stewart arrived on Wearside for a mere £338,000 and recorded 40 goals in 80 appearances. The Scotsman was sold for £9.30 million, demonstrating a substantial profit for the club.

It has been almost a year since Stewart's departure, and the club have failed to fill the forward's boots. Last season, Mason Burstow, Nazariy Rusyn and Luis 'Hemir' Semedo managed a meager three goals between them, emphasising the need for a goal-scoring striker.

Up until now, the £2.5 million spent on Ukranian forward, Rusyn, represents the highest fee spent on a player under Louis-Dreyfus' reign. This statistic portrays a clear strategy, but following this method will make it difficult to acquire someone of Mendy's quality.

Eliezer Mayenda looks set to be given his first real opportunity up front, having been given the nod in Sunderland's pre-season. However, this is a big ask of the 19-year-old, who struggled for game time whilst on loan at Hibernian last season.

Even if Mendy were to sign, it is unlikely any deal will be completed before the start of the campaign. Every game in the Championship is critical and cannot be underestimated, as the final standings could come down to the finest of margains.

Mendy the final piece of the jigsaw

The best business Sunderland have done this summer, is holding onto their prize assets. It has been a summer of speculation, with Anthony Patterson, Trai Hume, Dan Ballard, Dan Neil, Jobe Bellingham and Jack Clarke all being linked with big moves.

However, Sunderland's stance has been firm: the club will not sell their top talent on the cheap. This means that Sunderland are in an excellent position going into the new season, with all these names developing into enviable talents.

Indeed, Sunderland's potential starting eleven for the new season looks strong. If the Black Cats do hold on to all of their big stars, then there is only one position that looks weak and that is up front.

Sunderland's current crop of strikers simply do not compare to Mendy. Over the last three seasons, the Frenchman has 57 goals in 106 games for Caen in Ligue 2, while Sunderland's trio of Rusyn, Mayenda and Hemir, have 18 between them.

By adding Mendy, Sunderland would be adding goals and this would ease the burden on winger, Clarke, who scored 15 of Sunderland's 52 goals last season.

Up until now, Louis-Dreyfus' transfer model has been a success. During his reign, the club achieved promotion back to the Championship and a play-off finish, while sticking to a robust transfer policy.

However, there comes a time when things need tweaking. Just like Sunderland's slight change in transfer strategy this summer, the time has come for Louis-Dreyfus to adjust his spending policy.

The club have not spent a penny so far this window, with Alan Browne, Ian Poveda, Simon Moore and Blondy Nna Noukeu all arriving on free transfers. Surely, the time has come for Louis-Dreyfus to put his money where his mouth is and invest in a goalscorer.