Sunderland are ready to accept low offers for key defender Lamine Kone this summer following their relegation from the Premier League, according to Sunday’s print edition of The Sun.
Kone, 28, has been a Sunderland player since he signed from French club Lorient in January 2016. He made 30 Premier League appearances for the club under David Moyes this season but could not prevent their relegation to the Championship. As a result, Kone is now looking to leave the club this summer.
Sunderland valued Kone at around £20 million last season when Everton were interested in signing the defender, but the club will now have to take a much lower offer.
[interaction id=”5949906491c674963889f8e7″]Kone began his professional career with Ligue 2 side Châteauroux after three years in the club’s youth academy. He went on to make 78 appearances over four seasons before making the move to Ligue 1 side Lorient.
The defender spent time playing for Lorient B along with the first team as he looked to establish himself as a first-team player. He was initially signed as a replacement for French defender Laurent Koscielny, who had made the move to the Premier League with Arsenal.
Kone went on to make 139 appearances for Lorient, scoring seven goals in six seasons with the French club. He then signed for Sunderland.
Following the club’s relegation from the Premier League this season, Kone looks destined to leave Sunderland and avoid the Championship this summer. However, Sunderland fans and owner Ellis Short have much bigger issues on their mind at the moment, with the club currently without a manager or assistant manager.
