Marked for Alan Browne
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market25 Jun 2029
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Market25 Jun 2029
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at SM Caen is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Transfer targets25 Jun 2029
Everything agreed with Genoa, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Squad25 Jun 2029
Fabien Centonze was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Market25 Jun 2029
It is not a grievance and it is not a demand: he wants to play continental football, and he has stopped hiding it. Whether SM Caen can give him that is a question about the club, not about him.
Squad25 Jun 2029
A row about effort at SM Caen
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Caio Vinícius was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets25 Jun 2029
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Olympique Lyonnais have kept their man, and SM Caen go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The dugout25 Jun 2029
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Squad25 Jun 2029
The medical room confirms 29 days on the sidelines for Daan Bisschops, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Transfer targets4 Jun 2029
$4.9M on the table at Angers SCO. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
The dugout4 Jun 2029
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Market4 Jun 2029
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at SM Caen, and it is not being withdrawn.
Transfer targets4 Jun 2029
$510.0K on the table at FC Villefranche. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Transfer targets4 Jun 2029
SM Caen have gone to Valenciennes with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
Squad4 Jun 2029
Words exchanged at SM Caen
Fabien Centonze and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad4 Jun 2029
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Luis Martínez commits to SM Caen for another 4 years.
Squad4 Jun 2029
A row about effort at SM Caen
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Caio Vinícius was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Boardroom4 Jun 2029
The paperwork is done long before the player is. Ilian Saleh has agreed terms to come here when his current deal runs out, which means SM Caen have spent a summer's transfer budget on a phone call.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings23 Apr 2029
2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 8.39, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.
Market23 Apr 2029
Daouda Koné hands in a written request
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what SM Caen can pretend not to have heard.
Squad23 Apr 2029
Fabien Centonze was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Player ratings23 Apr 2029
Successful dribbles: 21. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad23 Apr 2029
Caio Vinícius falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match21 Apr 2029
AS Nancy made SM Caen work for it, but the scoreboard read 3‑1 at the end and the table does not ask how.
The dugout23 Apr 2029
Alan Browne gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout23 Apr 2029
“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Marc Vasseur on a 3‑1 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.
Squad23 Apr 2029
A season average of 7.20 with 3 goals behind it. Opponents have started planning around him, which is the sincerest compliment football pays.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market21 Aug 2028
The fee is $8.8M, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Huddersfield Town drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
Transfer targets21 Aug 2028
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
The dugout21 Aug 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Sunderland may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad21 Aug 2028
Habib Diarra and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Boardroom21 Aug 2028
5 academy graduates step up at Sunderland
Senior shirt numbers handed to boys the coaches have known since they were twelve. Most will not make it and all of them have already done the hard part.
Market21 Aug 2028
Experience through the door at Sunderland
Solly March arrives at 34 with nothing left to prove and plenty left to pass on. Legs are a young man's currency; knowing where to stand never ages.
Market21 Aug 2028
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Benjamin Wood has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market21 Aug 2028
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Mark Barnes is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
The dugout21 Aug 2028
No hiding place for Aji Alese
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Aji Alese, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market10 Jul 2028
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Sunderland, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market10 Jul 2028
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market10 Jul 2028
The paperwork is done: Josh Coburn joins from Millwall in a deal worth $4.4M. Now comes the harder part.
Market10 Jul 2028
Cardiff City paid $6.3M and Sunderland took it, which is the whole story in one sentence. The longer version involves a wage budget and will be told all season.
Squad10 Jul 2028
Habib Diarra in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Sunderland this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Transfer targets10 Jul 2028
The offer went to Brighton this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
The dugout10 Jul 2028
This is not rotation. Nilson Angulo has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Sunderland is pretending otherwise.
Transfer targets10 Jul 2028
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Squad10 Jul 2028
“The easiest signature of my career.” Caleb Shakespeare and Sunderland agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market15 May 2028
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Sunderland, and it is not being withdrawn.
Player ratings15 May 2028
No sign of nerves from Nejc Viher at 20 — 8.21
The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Nejc Viher did not need any: 8.21, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
The dugout15 May 2028
Alan Browne: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Sunderland have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
The dugout15 May 2028
This is not rotation. Nilson Angulo has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Sunderland is pretending otherwise.
The dugout15 May 2028
The manager makes an example of Léo Scienza
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The terraces15 May 2028
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 20-year-old it feels ownership of. Nejc Viher has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Match13 May 2028
A 1‑0 win over Chelsea, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Squad15 May 2028
Nejc Viher in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Sunderland this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Loan watch15 May 2028
43 starts and an average of 6.91. He went there to play and he is playing, which is the only thing a loan was ever for.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market17 Apr 2028
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Match15 Apr 2028
Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 9 matches without defeat is a foundation Sunderland did not have in the autumn.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Sunderland may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Loan watch17 Apr 2028
34 appearances at Sheffield United and the goals keep coming. Sunderland are watching this more closely than the borrowing club would like.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
This is not rotation. Nilson Angulo has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Sunderland is pretending otherwise.
Squad17 Apr 2028
Words at Sunderland training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Malick Fofana is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Squad17 Apr 2028
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Sunderland know it.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
The manager makes an example of Malick Fofana
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad17 Apr 2028
Alan Browne and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market28 Feb 2028
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Sunderland, and it is not being withdrawn.
The dugout28 Feb 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Sunderland may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad28 Feb 2028
Malick Fofana falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Squad28 Feb 2028
Everybody at Sunderland saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 38 the decline is real and measurable — 3 points — and the only question left is how the club handles somebody it owes a great deal to.
Loan watch28 Feb 2028
30 appearances at Wigan Athletic and the goals keep coming. Sunderland are watching this more closely than the borrowing club would like.
Squad28 Feb 2028
Alan Browne in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Sunderland this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout28 Feb 2028
The manager makes an example of Luis Vázquez
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Match26 Feb 2028
It needed Brian Brobbey to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Crystal Palace, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
The dugout28 Feb 2028
Chemsdine Talbi dropped after a run of poor form
The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match8 Jan 2028
Chastening afternoon for Sunderland
A 0‑3 beating by Brentford was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
Market10 Jan 2028
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Transfer targets10 Jan 2028
$6.1M on the table at Blackburn Rovers. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Market10 Jan 2028
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Market10 Jan 2028
Fleetwood Town pay $940.0K, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.
Transfer targets10 Jan 2028
Sunderland asked and Everton said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Match10 Jan 2028
Half the programme played, position 10, 25 on the board. Doubling it is the sum every supporter has done and the only one nobody at the club will do out loud.
Boardroom10 Jan 2028
Nobody left the Sunderland dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
The dugout10 Jan 2028
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑3 Daniel Johnson left the room before anybody could ask which.