ALFRED N’DIAYE SPEAKS OUT ABOUT HIS SUNDERLAND EXIT Three years after his controversial and surprise Sunderland exit, midfielder Alfred N’Diaye has revealed that the reason why he left the Stadium of Light in the fashion that he did was due to a clash in character with former manager Paolo Di Canio, theChronicle Live have reported. N’Diaye joined Sunderland in a £4 million deal in the January transfer window of 2013 from Turkish side Bursaspor under Martin O’Neill but, as soon as Di Canio took the reins at the club, his tenure was cut short. The Senegal international was a key figure under O’Neill but his relationship with Sunderland’s new, Italian manager was not the same and it eventually drove him out of the club. It went very well until the arrival of a new coach, Paolo Di Canio. We did not argue, but it was not right. Knowing me and seeing his character, it was better that I leave. Yet, I have played all the matches. In the following summer, N’Diaye was sent out on loan back to Turkey to play for Eskisehirspor for the first half of the season. He then returned from his loan and still had no place at Sunderland, so was loaned out to Real Betis for the remainder of the season. The powerful 26-year-old is now plying his trade with Villarreal in La Liga and is finally fulfilling the potential all Sunderland fans saw during his short spell on Wearside.
I remember well one of Alfie's first games for Sunderland. It was a home game against Southampton. Halfway through the first half, the summariser was shouting "Who's this N'Diaye? Southampton just have no answer to him. They're bouncing off him.". Alfie did well here until di Canio came, but then they fell out. We might also blame di Canio for the exit of Ji, who was starting to look promising in the late O'Neill period, and scored one of Sunderland's most memorable goals. I wouldn't be too put out if we took another look at N'Diaye.
Less of the 'We' then. You're not my spokesperson. YOU might want to blame Di Canio for getting rid of that **** player you seem to think was coming alone nicely.
I'd take him back on the basis that we're currently wheeling out O'Shea to play in CM which, no offence to a decent CB, is a ****ing disastrous way to start a season. But to say there are better players out there is an understatement.
N'Diaye was a good player IMO, I'm a big big fan of Real Betis (consider them my main club often at 4:50 on a Saturday when we've been tonked off some crap team!). I have to say N'Diaye was excellent last season in La Liga, big loss now that he's moved on to Villareal but in all fairness it's a canny step up for him.