Black Cats bolster squad as Javier Manquillo joins on loan

Javier Manquillo has joined Sunderland on a season long loan from Spanish giants Atlético Madrid.

The young Spaniard will now join up with David Moyes, becoming his sixth summer signing and you would expect him to now drop straight into the starting line up.

The 22 year old right back has sampled the rigours of the Premier League before having had a previous loan spell with Liverpool as part of Brendan Rodgers’ regime during the 2014/15 campaign.

It is fair to say the Spanish defender did not thrive during his time on Merseyside, returning to Atlético ahead of the timescales initially agreed by the two clubs. In fact a total of just ten Premier League games were notched up before his early departure.

However, a greater degree of success was achieved during a further loan spell at Olympic Marseille. Manquillo managed thirty one appearances in Ligue 1 and appears to have been highly regarded by supporters of the French side. Indeed, the general consensus suggests fans of Marseille were disappointed the U21 international did not re-join the club.

Despite being considered an emerging talent in some quarters Atlético were obviously willing to let him go and the deal provides Moyes with the opportunity to make the move permanent at the close of the current season should he wish.

Interestingly there were rumours of interest in Manquillo from Italian side Juventus in March and Los Colchoneros reportedly slapped a £30mil price tag on his head to stave off interest from their Champions League rivals.

The right back position is one Sunderland have wrestled with for some time as various players have failed to nail down a regular starting berth and it is hoped Manquillo will now solve the problem.

DeAndre Yedlin – himself on loan from Spurs – was the previous incumbent and has now joined fellow Spaniard Rafa Benitez and fierce northeast rivals, Newcastle United. Whilst certainly quick and athletic, Yedlin never looked particularly solid defensively and his final ball was not of the highest standard. Notwithstanding some supporters would have welcomed the USA international back to Wearside, it does not feel a tragedy that the move failed to materialise.

More recently 21 year old Donald Love has tried to stake a claim for the position and struggled enormously. There is an understanding that the former Manchester United youngster is a raw talent and it is likely Moyes did not envisage having to throw him into the side so soon after the capture of his signature earlier this month. Despite the difficulties he has already endured it is far too soon to be writing off the player given his age and limited game time.

Should Love drop to the bench as expected, given the upheaval of their transfer window and the back-to-back defeats in the league, Sunderland must now hope Manquillo hits the ground running.