Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sunderland and Luton Town at the Stadium Of Light, Sunderland on Saturday 18th March 2023. (Photo by Michael Driver/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Kristjaan Speakman has explained why he sanctioned the loan (with an option to buy) departure of 22-year-old Pierre Ekwah, who played almost every game last season and still had three years left on his contract.
WASN’T GETTING GAMES
“Pierre’s got three years left on his contract, but if you look at the minutes, he is not in the team and that is the hard facts on it. We were just trying to work out what was the best next step for him.”
CHANCE TO PLAY ABROAD
“There were a number of opportunities that came up, one of which was Saint Etienne. I think it was a significant loan offer, gave him an opportunity to play in a different environment, in a different league, and enabled us to be able to keep him playing regularly, which arguably he might not have done maybe in the first opening sequence of the season.”
INJURY WAS UNFORTUNATE
“With his injury, he just ended up being a little bit further down in the selection order. For us, it was a good opportunity and freed up another midfield space for us to bring a different type of player in with Salis and Milan. It was just around us composing what we feel is the right squad for the upcoming season.”
