Habib Diarra: B-
When assessing Sunderland’s club record signing, it’s important to remember that given the frugal approach that ultimately led us back to the top flight, splashing out £30 million on a player would be the equivalent of a rival team paying twenty or thirty million more — the temptation is to believe that he’ll wow you from day one, and I think this played a major role in the scrutiny that the Senegal international was subjected to.
However, despite some iffy performances towards the end of the season,
Diarra’s campaign was more or less typical of a player that missed a good chunk through injury and AFCON: promising at times, disappointing at others and defined by a general sense of “We haven’t quite seen the best of him”.
Alongside Granit Xhaka and Noah Sadiki, he looked excellent early on as part of our new-look midfield; he got himself on the scoresheet against Burnley, and ending the season with an assist for Wilson Isidor at Everton was just the sort of confidence-booster he would’ve sought.
The club will hopefully show 100% faith in him for 2026/2027, and I’m convinced that with time and patience, we’ll begin to see the absolute best of Diarra once the new season kicks off. He just needs to nail down a position and to rack up a consistent run of games in order for that to happen.
Granit Xhaka: A+++++
Did I put enough pluses next to the grade, and does that even do Xhaka’s impact justice?
If a signing can become a Sunderland great in less than fifty appearances, the former Bayer Leverkusen midfielder and Swiss international skipper did just that, raising the standards to new levels, bringing a true winner’s mentality to the dressing room and inspiring as much through his words as his deeds — and his deeds took the form of a string of elite performances in midfield as he made what felt like an overdue return to the Premier League following his exploits in Germany.
Labelled by some as “the manager on the pitch”, Xhaka is an inspirational presence at Sunderland — effectively Régis Le Bris’ eyes and ears in the heat of the battle, and that he should’ve become the first Lads’ skipper to lead us into Europe via our league position felt fitting.
Assists, ground covered, nous, big-game mentality, a connection to the fans…you name it, he brought it. And his teammates responded emphatically.
Noah Sadiki: A
When Chelsea and their own expensively-assembled midfield conduit of Enzo Fernández and Moisés Caicedo rolled into town on the final day, Sadiki chose an ideal moment to prove his worth with a brilliant performance at the end of what was a hugely impressive season.
The kind of energetic, game-breaking midfielder that we hankered after for years but seldom managed to sign during our 2007-2017 top flight run, the DR Congo international looked at home straight away and caught the eye with a number of relentless displays — and like so many of his fellow summer signings, the fee spent to bring him from Union Saint Gilloise feels quite modest when you consider what he brought to the team.
Given the athletic demands of the Premier League nowadays, Sadiki might be high on the list of players for whom a summer move could be in the pipeline, but we’ll be under no pressure to sell and even if we did, it feels like a good bet that the figure will be eye-catching.
In the meantime, he’ll head to the World Cup in good form and hopefully ready to embark on an extended run in the USA.
Chemsdine Talbi: B+
There’s something about Talbi that I really like — he’s a tricky, elusive and skilful player with good work rate and at this level, that’s always a combination worth keeping an eye on.
At times during 2025/2026, he found himself on the sidelines and seemingly out of favour but when called upon, he made telling contributions, with the winning goal at Stamford Bridge, a firecracker against Burnley and the equaliser against Newcastle at St James’ Park.
I think he’ll be one to watch next season; he should find game time easier to come by in Europe and like many of our young prospects, he’ll hopefully be able to showcase his talent with a more consistent run of games. He’s also the subject of a cracking chant, with The Cranberries’ alt-rock stomper Zombie being appropriated and reworded in his honour.
“In your head”, indeed.
Nilson Angulo: C
A rangy winger with a good touch and a good turn of pace, Angulo has shown flashes of promise but has also been assailed by injuries after arriving in January.
However, he seems to play with a positive, ‘head-up’ approach, and that’s always encouraging. A good World Cup, a good pre-season and he’ll hopefully be ready to make up for lost time when 2026/2027 kicks off.
Bertrand Traoré: B
It was a very strange quirk of fate that our cheapest summer signing was at one stage looking like our best and most effective winger — somewhat reminiscent of Patrick Roberts with a bit more in the way of end product, as it were, but AFCON and injury derailed his season and he’s not been seen in a red and white shirt since.
Will we activate the option and keep him here for a second season? It might make sense, given how demanding a campaign lies ahead, but there’ll certainly be a plan in place, either way.
Simon Adingra: C+
In theory, the former Brighton forward and 2023 AFCON hero was the most ‘blue chip’ of our attacking arrivals, but his Sunderland career already looks in the balance and finishing the 2025/2026 season on loan at Monaco arguably wasn’t in the script.
Was it down to a clash of playing styles? A lack of physicality and endeavour?
His well-taken goal against Leeds United might’ve represented a turning point after a stop-start first half of the season but his eventual departure for the French Riviera after missing out on selection for the Ivory Coast’s AFCON squad was an unexpected twist and it’s doubtful that we’ll ever see him play for us again.
If not, and a parting of the ways is agreed upon, we’ll hopefully recoup a decent chunk of the initial fee. Adingra will get a move that suits him, and all parties will move on. A bit of a puzzler.
Jocelin Ta Bi: C-
Although a new signing, Ta Bi’s Sunderland career is yet to fully begin after suffering an injury shortly after making his first team debut and a turning in a couple of encouraging cameos following his January arrival.
Clearly a player with plenty of promise, but we’ll have to wait for a run of games before making an assessment of where he’s at.
Brian Brobbey: A
The man at the centre of one of the most uplifting stories to unfold at the Stadium of Light all season, the former Ajax striker arrived after enduring some harrowing troubles in his personal life and ended the season as a firm favourite with the Sunderland fans after mixing some spectacular goals with the kind of hold-up play, take-no-shit attitude and level of physicality that would put the most acclaimed ‘Barclaysman’ to shame.
He leathered one into the top corner to earn us a point at Spurs; he struck late on against Arsenal at home, and he sent thousands of Geordies into meltdown when he pounced at St James’ Park, completing the turnaround with a sharp close-range finish.
He also put the fear of God into defenders around the league and was seldom protected by referees, who seemed to suffer from periodic and as-yet unexplained bouts of blindness whenever Brobbey was wrestled to the ground.
With a better standard of service and the benefit of a full pre-season programme behind him, why can’t the Dutch international kick on next season and aim for fifteen or more goals? He’s got the attributes and he’s most certainly got the desire — and he’s also a Wear/Tyne derby hero!
