When Sunderland were first linked with a move for Tottenham defender Kevin Danso, I made the mistake of jumping to conclusions and assuming that given Spurs’ domestic struggles in recent seasons and their apparent willingness to allow the Austrian international and 2025 Europa League final hero to depart North London, it had a slight feeling of “hit and hope”, even if central defensive reinforcements were undoubtedly needed.
However, there was also a lesson there — namely that premature judgements
often come back to haunt you and that any footballer is only as effective and influential as the environment in which he plays allows him to be.
Even though Danso is still in the reasonably early stages of his Sunderland career, I’m more than willing to admit that my initial worries about his signing have certainly been eased thanks to a succession of highly impressive and controlled performances at the heart of the red and white defence.
Yes, his most recent appearance was a tough one as we were pulled this way and that (partly due to our own lack of discipline) by Manchester City, but that’s not a reflection on Danso, who’s clearly a defender of substantial ability and with plenty of international pedigree to sit alongside his club experience.
Depending on who you talked to during the summer, the need to sign at least one new central defender was either pressing or not as high a priority as it might’ve appeared to be, but with European football to contend with and rapid turnarounds between games, I did feel it was an important area to cover off — something that was highlighted during a wobbly opening-day loss at the hands of Ipswich Town.
When it became obvious that Danso was set to join up with Régis Le Bris’ squad for 2026/2027, I couldn’t help but notice many Spurs fans speaking glowingly of his character, his charitable work and how well he’d acquitted himself during some turbulent times at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium — and given that Roberto de Zerbi’s side have gotten off to yet another alarmingly poor start with Danso settling in nicely at the Stadium of Light, you do wonder about the rationale behind allowing him to move on.
Danso strikes me as a relatively low-key sort of character.
He doesn’t come across as the kind of footballer that’ll seek the limelight or personal glory, even if he came very close to a spectacular individual moment during our Europa League victory over AZ Alkmaar, with his long-range shot just about being tipped over the visitors’ crossbar.
Instead, he seems to be blessed with a very strong sense of focus and a determination to do his job to the absolute best of his ability with no frills and no histrionics.
As we all know, if you want to sign for and make a contribution at Sunderland under Le Bris, possessing the right kind of mentality doesn’t fall into the “would be nice but not esssential” category — it’s an absolute non- negotiable.
In 2025/2026, we were driven by what I can only describe as a ferocious commitment to the task at hand, and that includes at the back, where a willingness to make the extra block, outjump your opponent and give that little bit extra in pursuit of victory proved pivotal during a memorable campaign.
Without a doubt, the same expectations will be placed upon the shoulders of our defenders this season but with Danso on hand, perhaps it’ll make life just a shade easier for the likes of Omar Alderete and Dan Ballard, as well as providing Le Bris with greater scope for rotation when the games begin to come thick and fast.
From what I’ve seen thus far, it feels like a decent bet that Danso will be an excellent option for both Premier League and European fixtures, and if he can find a consistently high level of performance, the fee quoted for Sunderland’s option to buy will seem ever more agreeable.
Ever since Alex Neil arrived in 2022 and instilled the kind of much-needed defensive solidity that provided the foundation on which promotion was achieved, Sunderland have generally dealt very effectively in classy, tough and reliable central defenders.
Bailey Wright — bloodied and battered yet unbroken at Hillsborough during the 2022 playoffs — was harder than Aussie limestone; Danny Batth was a colossus during 2022/2023, and then you’ve got the likes of Luke O’Nien, Chris Mepham, Ballard, Nordi Mukiele and Alderete.
All hugely influential figures that played key roles in Sunderland’s rise during the past four years, and as Danso continues to settle in, build a rapport with his teammates and gets to grips with what Le Bris expects from him, I’ve every confidence that he’ll prove to be a shrewd and extremely valuable member of our squad for 2026/2027.
