Sunderland transfer news: Manager’s verdict on Aston Villa midfield as Premier League club weigh up options

Lamare Bogarde, a midfielder for Aston Villa, is reportedly attracting interest from Sunderland after spending a loan at Bristol City.

After the teenager was called back from his loan by Aston Villa, Matt Taylor, the manager of Bristol Rovers, sent his best wishes to Lamare Bogarde, a midfielder.

Bogarde, 19, had played in 14 League One games for Rovers this season, but under Taylor—who took over at Memorial Stadium on December 1—he was not involved in the league.

Bogarde is apparently interested in moving on loan to Sunderland, and SPL team Aberdeen is rumored to have enquired about the player’s availability.

Taylor responded to Villa’s move to call up Bogarde by saying: “He had been involved at the club for five or six weeks prior, but not consistently.” Could I not give it to him? Did I see enough in that brief period of time to give him that chance? Most likely not. With our best intentions, he has returned.

Similar to any other player. You certainly anticipate more possibilities when you’re on loan, especially from a Premier League team, but with Bristol Rovers, you have to work extremely hard to obtain the opportunity to play for the shirt. We simply feel that, over the past few weeks, he didn’t quite fit into the dynamic that has worked for us.”

During the summer transfer window, Sunderland attempted to sign another central midfield player, but they were unable to finalize a deal. This season, Jobe Bellingham has reverted to a deeper midfield role, and the Black Cats have relied heavily on Dan Neil and Pierre Ekwah in the middle of the pitch.