Despite a huge start to his career, Yann M’Vila only ever briefly played in the Premier League, during a one year loan spell at Sunderland AFC.
The Championship side, then in England’s top flight, signed the Frenchman from Rubin Kazan, where he had arrived two years earlier for €12m from Rennes.
Sunderland were predicted to fight against relegation that year, and felt the defensive midfielder, who already had 22 France caps to his name by them, could help them avoid the drop.
He arrived full of confidence, and ended up being a very good addition to their squad, making 40 appearances in all competitions that year, including 37 in the Premier League, scoring one goal and assisting another five.
Sunderland ended the season in 17th with 39 points, and M’Vila returned to Russia, where he stayed until 2018, when Saint-Etienne repatriated him.
How was it? “Magical. In England, football is the joie de vivre. Sunderland were playing for a spot between 15th and 20th, but in reality, you’re playing Champions League football every day, with people who applaud you when you get thrashed by a big team. The pitches, the fans… One day, in the Tyne and Wear derby, we beat Newcastle 3-0, which is very important for the fans, such is the strength of the rivalry between the two clubs.
“On the third goal, the fans come on the pitch, hug us, but the game isn’t over. So the fans returned to the stands and sat on their seats. You only see that over there. They wrote a song for me! The club wanted to keep me. I’d signed a pre-contract and I left it to those in charge to talk with Kazan.
“A few days later, I learned they were signing Didier Ndong from Lorient for €17m. I’m not going to lie, I took it very, very badly. I had come to London to sign with them the last day of the transfer window. I trusted what I’d been told.”
