Boss Makes ‘We Had A Plan’ And ‘It Worked’ Admission On Sunderland Move For Star | OneFootball

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Union SG boss Sebastien Pocognoli believes the club’s plan for Noah Sadiki to take the next step in his career ‘worked’ with his move to Sunderland.

Sadiki impressed in the Union SG engine room last season as the club scooped up the Belgian Pro League title.

Newly promoted Premier League side Sunderland took notice and Sadiki has joined the Black Cats on a deal worth €17m plus a further €3m in add-ons.

Losing the 20-year-old midfielder could be seen as a blow for Union SG, but Pocognoli insists that there has been no stress caused by Sadiki and Koki Machida, who joined Hoffenheim, leaving as it was fully planned for.

He thinks Union SG’s idea for Sadiki to take the next step is something which has worked with the Sunderland move.

“All of this was planned because we had a plan for each player at the beginning of last season”, the Union SG coach said via DH Sports.

“For 90 per cent of the players, the plan in place worked. The goal for Koki and Noah was for them to take a step forward in their careers.

“Machida had great moments and doubts, but we continued to follow his plan.

“In Sadiki’s case, it worked.”

Sadiki has put pen to paper to a five-year contract at Sunderland and the Black Cats will hope he can adapt quickly to life in the Premier League, which will be a step up on the Belgian league.

While he won the Belgian league title last season, the season before he won the Belgian Cup, meaning he departs Belgian football with both top trophies in his pocket.

He heads to Sunderland with 140 senior appearances in club football to his name and played for Anderlecht earlier in his career.