Sunderland winger Chemsdine Talbi produced arguably the goal of the season so far with his stunning strike in the 3-0 win over Burnley last time out in the Premier League.
The Morocco international cut inside from the left flank to unleash a devastating finish off the crossbar and in, with what was the third goal on the night.
Signed from Club Brugge for a fee of £18m last summer, Talbi has scored three goals and provided one assist in 18 appearances in the Premier League so far this season.
Whilst he has produced moments of quality, like the goal against Burnley and his finish against Chelsea, the winger has not created a single ‘big chance’ for his teammates this season.
The 20-year-old prospect needs to add more consistency to his play at the top end of the pitch, as both a scorer and a creator, in order to establish himself as a star on Wearside.
Why Sunderland are still looking for their next Amad Diallo
The Black Cats are still looking for their next version of Amad Diallo on the wing at the Stadium of Light, since he lit up the pitch with his electric performances on loan from Manchester United.
In the 2022/23 Championship season, the Ivorian winger scored 13 goals and created four ‘big chances’, whilst averaging 1.1 key passes per game, across 27 starts for Sunderland.
The young forward delivered consistent quality in the final third from a wide position to lead the Black Cats to the play-offs that year, and the club have not had a reliable performer out wide so far in the Premier League this season.
Talbi has been the most productive winger in the squad, with three goals and one assist, which speaks to how fairly average Regis Le Bris’ wingers have been overall.
25/26 Premier League
Best Sunderland winger
Goals
Talbi – 3
Assists
Talbi – 1
xA
Sadiki – 0.79
Big chances created
Traore – 2
Key passes per game
Talbi – 0.6
No Sunderland winger has hit 1.00 xA or averaged at least one key pass per game in the Premier League so far this season. This illustrates the need for their next Amad.
The club clearly identified the two wide positions as areas that could be strengthened ahead of the second half of the season, as they swooped to sign a star who could be the next Amad at the Stadium of Light.
The star who could be Sunderland’s new Amad
Sunderland moved to sign Nilson Angulo from Anderlecht on a permanent deal for a fee of £17.5m, placing him near the top of the club’s most expensive ever signings, on deadline day to bolster Le Bris’ options out wide.
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The 22-year-old attacker is not a left-footed right winger like Amad, so he is not a like-for-like with the Manchester United star, but he is a right-footed left winger who plays like the Ivorian.
Angulo, who has been capped 12 times by Ecuador at senior level, is a direct and quick wide forward who likes to take his man on consistently, whilst delivering goals and assists for his side, as Amad did during his time at Sunderland.
Whilst playing for Anderlecht’s reserves in 2024, Angulo scored a goal that the former Black Cats loanee would have been proud of with a stunning curling effort off the woodwork and in.
The Ecuador international did not just deliver quality at academy level for the Belgian side, though, as his form in the 2025/26 Pro League season suggests that he could be Le Bris’ best winger in the second half of this term.
25/26 Pro League
Angulo
Appearances
22
xG
3.77
Goals
6
Big chances created
9
Key passes per game
2.1
Assists
5
Successful dribbles per game
2.0
Angulo has scored twice as many goals as any Sunderland winger, created seven more ‘big chances’, and more than twice as many key passes per game on average.
On top of that, he has averaged 2.0 successful dribbles per game, which speaks to the directness of his play, and that may provide supporters with a reminder of Amad, who averaged 1.7 dribbles per game out wide in his season on loan in the Championship.
U23 scout Antonio Mango described the forward as a “sizzling” talent who is a “joy to watch”. That is backed up by both his dribbling numbers and how often he provides goals and assists from a left wing position.
If Angulo can carry his form from the Pro League over to the Premier League, the Ecuador international looks set to be Le Bris’ own version of Amad on Wearside, as a skillful and quick winger who can both score and assist goals with regularity.
