Sunderland’s Pierre Ekwah arrived at AS Saint-Étienne on loan towards the end of last summer.
The midfielder missed only two games since joining the Ligue 1 club.
Allez Les Lions interviewed the Sunderland man, where he talked about his time at Saint-Étienne, difference between the Championship and the Ligue 1, and his international future.
The French club secured a promotion to the top division and face danger of dropping out to the second division. They are currently 16th in the table [18 teams in Ligue 1].
When asked to review his season at Saint-Étienne, Ekwah stated both he and the club had a mixed season so far. This is the first season he has played at the top division in his career.
“It’s the first time I’ve been in a situation like this, so I’m still learning,” he said.
“It’s my first season in the topflight, so from my point of view, you have to redouble your efforts and do things you haven’t done before. If we’re in this situation, it means there are things we haven’t done. You have to question yourself. You have to give it you’re all at every training session.”
Sunderland signed him from West Ham United in January 2023 and the midfielder was a regular in the Championship until the end of last season. He lost his place after Régis Le Bris arrived at the Stadium of Light last summer.
On the difference between the Championship and the Ligue 1, Ekwah explained: “That’s a difficult question to answer. The Championship is very English. Ligue 1 is very technical, very tactical, there’s a lot of thinking involved.”
“In the Championship, there’s a lot of basketball games. In Ligue 1, there may be less, but the level is higher because there are stronger players in Ligue 1. The Ligue 1 is a notch above the Championship.”
Ekwah, who was born in France, says his parents are from Cameroon and afre “very close to their roots”. He’s yet to make his senior debut at an international stage and isn’t thinking about representing Cameroon in the future.
“I never asked myself the question. I was never offered, nothing came to me from either side,” he added.
“What’s certain for the moment is that there’s a season going on and that’s with Saint-Étienne. I’m not thinking about the national team at all right now. I’m very focused on my club. But if one day something comes up, I’ll think about it when the time comes.”
