Sunderland: SoL faithful may be puzzled by £50m-rated Newcastle United target | OneFootball

The winger struggled during his last spell in the North East of England

There are less than two months until the January transfer window opens, meaning speculation is already starting to emerge around several players.

One EFL product who looks as though he will be the subject of considerable interest at the turn of the year is Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo.

The 24-year-old joined the Cherries back in the 2023 January transfer window, when he signed from Bristol City for a reported £10 million.

Since making that move, the Ghana international has become one of the more effective wide players in the top flight of English football, particularly this season.

As a result, some big fees are now being talked about, as rumours begin to swirl over a move away from Bournemouth for the winger.

Newcastle United linked with Antoine Semenyo

According to recent reports, it is Newcastle United who are currently leading the race to sign Semenyo, once the window reopens again at the turn of the year.

The Magpies are apparently keen to sign a right-winger after missing out on a new option in that position over the summer.

It also looks as though Eddie Howe's side could still face competition for his services though, with fellow Premier League sides Liverpool and Tottenham also credited with an interest.

Even so, if the winger is to leave Bournemouth midway through this season, it seems he will not be doing so cheaply.

It has been claimed that Andoni Iraola's side will demand a fee in the region of £40-50million for the sale of the winger.

Indeed, with a contract at The Vitality Stadium until the end of the 2028/29 season, there is no pressure on Semenyo's current club to sell him at a price that does not suit them in January.

Even so, it could be argued that many of those connected with Newcastle's bitter rivals Sunderland, who will be particularly surprised at the suggestion the winger could cost up to £50m.

Antoine Semenyo flopped at Sunderland

Back in January 2020, Semenyo joined the Black Cats on loan from Bristol City - signing until the end of the 2019/20 season.

At the time, the winger had already made a handful of appearances in the Championship for the Robins.

He has also earned first-team experience during loan spells in National League South with Bath City and in League Two with Newport County, where he had turned heads.

Sunderland, meanwhile, were competing for a place in the League One play-offs - and with it a shot at promotion to the Championship - at the time of Semenyo's arrival.

The winger though, would struggle to make much of a contribution to their efforts to succeed with those attempts to secure a return to the second tier.

In the first ten games the Black Cats played after his arrival, Semenyo managed seven appearances, the first six of which were as a substitute.

He was finally given a start against Bristol Rovers in early March 2020, although that game would end badly for Sunderland, who were beaten 2-0 at the Memorial Stadium.

At that point, the pandemic brought a premature end to the regular League One season, with positions decided on a points-per-game basis.

Sunderland would miss out on a place in the play-offs by 0.07 PPG, as they were forced to settle for eighth in the final standings.

A return of just two points from their final four games - all of which Semenyo played a part in - no doubt proved rather costly in that respect.

Indeed, in the seven games the winger played a part in, they took just eight points - well below their overall average for the season - while the player himself failed to score or register an assist.

Consequently, not only did Semenyo struggle to establish himself with a League One side, he also seemingly found it hard to make the required impact when he did get on the pitch.

The forward would return to Ashton Gate at the end of the season and from there his rise really began. He established himself as a key player for City and a nightmare opponent for Championship defenders with his brute strength, rapid pace, and powerful shooting.

A move to Bournemouth followed and subsequently his links to the likes of Newcastle at a potential £50m fee.