Ricky Clucas says…
The Geertruida news is undoubtedly the most interesting part of the update, as sad as it is to see lovely Dennis and Dan move on.
With all the talk within the club about the resetting of expectations and the final push towards Europe, I feel like Geertruida played a key role in all of that being translated to the pitch.
Absolutely love Nordi at right back, and Ballard, and Omar is undoubtedly our strongest centre back pairing defensively.
But I feel Nordi at right centre half and Lutsha at right back
make up our strongest defence overall, and I’d see securing him permanently as the perfect start to our summer business.
Andrew Parrington says…
It’s not the biggest surprise on the list — not least because it was confirmed this would happen in January — but I want to focus my thoughts on Dan Neil.
He’s been a great servant for the club, and he played no small part in our journey from League One to where we are now.
He was never the loudest, but he was still a great leader as captain in the Championship promotion-winning season, and a perfect foil for the high-energy of Luke O’Nien’s club captaincy. His calmness anchored the team and saw us through some difficult patches, and ultimately, he has to be given a lot of credit for what we achieved in 2025.
He embodied Sunderland’s approach, and long after he’s gone, he’ll remain an important part of our Academy’s pitch: arrive as a young boy, become the captain of a winning Sunderland side at Wembley.
I hope this is just the start for him, and wherever he ends up next, they’ll be very lucky to have a great player and professional. He’ll always be a hero here.
David Elliott says…
A mixture of excitement and sadness, but very much a sense of a club with a plan moving forward.
Very sad to see Dan Neil and Dennis Cirkin go after all they’ve given to the club; however, I don’t feel they’re bitter about how it has turned out. Seeing both their reactions to the final day shows what they still feel for the club and its supporters.
I did like Bertrand Traoré — he offered us a lot operating on the right, but with his injury record, it’s right to let him go and very exciting to see the young talent that’s being rewarded.
I’ve only seen the young goalkeeper Isaac Allan when he was on loan at Morpeth Town in the Northern Premier League. He looked good and was well rated by Morpeth supporters. And obviously, the news that Lutsharel Geertruida is still in the mix is fantastic.
Again, looking at his reaction to events in the final throes of the season shows that he cares. Let’s face it, as Quinny says, “Sunderland gets under your skin”.
Dean McDonald says…
I think the only slight surprise is Bertrand Traoré leaving — I thought with his experience, we might’ve triggered the extra year.
It’s always a shame when one of the players who’s been on the journey from League One leaves, but it makes sense for Dennis Cirkin, Dan Neil and Niall Huggins. Hopefully, they all get good moves; they’re all still young and have bright careers ahead of them.
Excellent news regarding Lutsharel Geertruida. It sounds like it’s all on him now, so hopefully the club do what they can to convince him to sign. A genuinely class player who was criminally underused in 2025/2026, in my opinion.
Matthew Donne says…
I’m going to miss the likes of Dan Neil and Dennis Cirkin — what they’ve done for this club is absolutely immense, and Neil’s departure is also now even more cutting as we need his profile for UEFA squad rules.
I’m actually a bit gutted to see Bertrand Traoré leave. He was solid, a seasoned pro, and he gave us a good outlet on the right. However, with two decent injuries and an ageing player, I can see why the decision was made.
Lutsharel Geertruida being in discussions is a monumental piece of news. The way the club showed him off on socials and his reactions to games gave me hope the noise wasn’t all true.
To round off, seeing the young lads signing new pro deals is exciting for the future. All eyes on Finn Geragusian!
Owen Sara says…
The Lutsharel Geertruida news is certainly interesting.
No more Arne Slot at Liverpool — with whom he won the league with Feyenoord — and Feyenoord not having a manager at the moment will hopefully work in our favour.
Bertrand Traoré seemed to be one of our best assets until his injury. He was always playing catch-up with his fitness, so I’m not too surprised to see him go. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Simon Adingra move on — I think there is a player there, but don’t think it suits Régis Le Bris’ playing style.
Also, good luck to Dan Neil in his next venture. He gave us lifelong memories and lived the dream.
Wadey says…
I agree with both Dan Neil and Dennis Cirkin.
I’d have liked to have seen them some more this season, but I implicitly trust the club to make the right choices. A long-term understudy to Granit Xhaka is undoubtedly needed, and I wondered if Neil could have filled that role with some guidance and instruction from the man himself. Maybe there’s a discussion to have about Chris Rigg fulfilling that — he’s got the talent and work rate to do the job.
I don’t know enough about the academy players.
I’m pleased that some of the youth team lads that are being talked about a lot — Finn Geragusian, for example — have been given full contracts. I feel this will be important for them and us when it comes to including four academy graduates in our Europa League squad.
