{"id":9742,"date":"2025-06-16T20:27:44","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T20:27:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/2025\/06\/16\/sunderland-weighing-up-move-for-this-lyon-centre-back-a-premier-league-return-on-the-cards\/"},"modified":"2025-06-16T20:27:44","modified_gmt":"2025-06-16T20:27:44","slug":"sunderland-weighing-up-move-for-this-lyon-centre-back-a-premier-league-return-on-the-cards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/2025\/06\/16\/sunderland-weighing-up-move-for-this-lyon-centre-back-a-premier-league-return-on-the-cards\/","title":{"rendered":"Sunderland Weighing Up Move For This Lyon Centre-back: A Premier League Return On The Cards?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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If a recent report from Foot Mercato<\/a> is believed to be true, newly promoted Premier League outfit Sunderland are weighing up a summer swoop for Duje Caleta-Car. But they are not alone in the race with clubs from Turkey also keeping close eyes on the outcast Olympique Lyonnais centre-back.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The 28-year-old Croatia international progressed through \u0160ibenik\u2019s academy ranks before breaking into their senior squad in the second tier of Croatian football. He then joined Austrian heavyweights Red Bull Salzburg for a modest \u20ac50,000 in July 2013 and was sent on back-to-back loans to Pasching and Liefering in the lower divisions of Austria, providing him with regular game time.<\/p>\n

Caleta-Car eventually earned a regular role in Salzburg colours, and his rise saw him secure a \u20ac19m transfer to French giants Marseille in the summer of 2018. He was even close to joining Liverpool a few years later; however, a move did not materialise due to the Phocaeans\u2019 failure to find a replacement in time. Although he plied his trade in England with Southampton<\/a> a few months later, the centre-half could not prove his worth in the heart of the backline, with the Saints finishing rock-bottom in the league standings.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Sunderland
GLASGOW, SCOTLAND \u2013 OCTOBER 03: Duje Caleta-Car of Olympique Lyonnais battles for possession with Cyriel Dessers of Rangers FC during the UEFA Europa League 2024\/25 League Phase MD2 match between Rangers FC and Olympique Lyonnais at Ibrox Stadium on October 03, 2024, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian MacNicol\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After a successful season-long loan, Lyon activated a \u20ac3.59m purchase option last summer. But the arrival of Paulo Fonseca as Les Gones\u2019 chief saw him lose his starting status in the second half of the 2024-25 campaign. The Portuguese does not view Caleta-Car in his first-team plans, and the defender, too, would prefer a fresh challenge rather than fighting for his place with the Ligue 1 giants.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why Sunderland Should Rope In The Croatian<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A dramatic play-off final victory against Sheffield United brought Sunderland<\/a> back to the top flight of the English game after eight long years. A lot has changed at the Stadium of Light, as their \u2018French project\u2019 under the ownership of Kyril Louis-Dreyfus has largely been a success so far. Louis-Dreyfus, along with the gaffer R\u00e9gis Le Bris, used his contacts and connections to land the French pair Enzo Le F\u00e9e and Wilson Isidor. They were pivotal to their promotion, but a sterner test awaits next season as the main objective would be to escape relegation.<\/p>\n

Despite having Luke O\u2019Nien and Daniel Ballard, who made significant strides in deep defence, their lack of Premier League experience demands reinforcements. Chris Mepham has returned to Bournemouth following a successful loan. But the Black Cats might fail to tie him down permanently amid strong rumours<\/a> of his potential Sheffield United switch. A move to Wearside could see Caleta-Car grab a key first-team status, and it remains to be seen whether his tenure in France persuades the ex-Lorient boss.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If a recent report from Foot Mercato is believed to be true, newly promoted Premier League outfit Sunderland are weighing up a summer swoop for Duje Caleta-Car. But they are not alone in the race with clubs from Turkey also keeping close eyes on the outcast Olympique Lyonnais centre-back. The 28-year-old Croatia international progressed through […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12953,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9742","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9742","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12953"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9742"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9742\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9742"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9742"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo76e71539\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9742"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}