Stade Rennais have stepped forward to sign Sunderland‘s Eliezer Mayenda this summer.
The striker joined Sunderland from FC Sochaux in July 2023 and played a key role in their return to the Premier League.
He scored the winner in Sunderland’s Championship playoff final against Sheffield United in May 2025.
However, Régis Le Bris didn’t utilise Mayenda regularly last season. To put it in context, he played 1,004 minutes from 21 games, managing two goals and an assist.
The 21-year-old’s situation hasn’t stopped him from attracting interest from other clubs.
Last month, Sport Witness covered claims from France that he’s expected to leave the Black Cats. Several unnamed clubs have positioned themselves to sign him.
Sunderland player could return to France
Stade Rennais have completed the signing of goalkeeper Nicolas Lemaître, who arrives on a free transfer after a spell at Troyes.
Saturday’s edition of Ouest-France covers it and then reports on the potential arrivals at the Ligue 1 side.
The newspaper says Eliezer Mayenda ‘on the horizon’, meaning he could return to France this summer.
Ouest-France makes it clear it’s their own information about the Sunderland player. They claim the operation is ‘in the works’ for the Spain U21 international, to finalise the deal with the Premier League side for over €10m.
That’s all they have to say about the attacker. If Stade Rennais are making advances with the English club, it may be fair to assume that their talks with Mayenda have progressed well.
Good deal for Sunderland
A year ago, Eliezer Mayenda signed a new contract until 2030, and Transfermarkt value him at €16m. Despite this, €10m would be a good deal for Régis Le Bris’ side.
In July 2023, L’Equipe reported that Sochaux received €1m from Sunderland and kept a 25% sell-on clause. This allows Sunderland to make a good profit, even after deducting Sochaux’s resale percentage.
