Sunderland head coach Regis Le Bris has left the door open to a possible loan return for Chelsea striker Marc Guiu, although he insisted the Black Cats have no immediate plans to recruit a new striker.
Guiu experienced a frustrating first season at Stamford Bridge after completing a move from Barcelona in the summer of 2024.
The 19-year-old was restricted to just three Premier League appearances due to technical decisions and injury, although he did at least impress with six goals in seven Conference League matches.
After struggling for game time last term, Guiu was sent out on loan to Sunderland at the start of the current campaign, with a view to gaining regular minutes for the newly-promoted club.
Le Bris leaves door open to Guiu return
However, Guiu made just three appearances for the Black Cats before he was recalled at the end of August to provide cover for the injured Liam Delap.
Under FIFA regulations, a player can only feature for two clubs in one season, meaning that if Chelsea opt to loan Guiu out in January, then Sunderland will be his only viable option.
With that in mind, Sunderland boss Le Bris was asked whether he would consider bringing Guiu back to the club when he spoke to reporters ahead of Saturday’s away clash with Chelsea.
“Yeah, but too early to say,” Le Bris told reporters. “The problem with him is he played for Sunderland and played for Chelsea. So, if he has to go on loan, it’s only for Sunderland.
“So, it might be the only choice, but it’s up to us to decide. And at the minute we have good strikers and we don’t need anything at the minute.”
Is another loan move on the cards for Guiu?
Guiu has featured in Chelsea’s last three matches, including a goalscoring appearance in Wednesday’s 5-1 win over Ajax in the Champions League.
However, Guiu initially struggled for minutes on his return to Stamford Bridge, which was down to the fact that Maresca was not happy with his application in training.
The Barcelona academy product has since forced his way into Maresca’s plans, and will hope to build upon his recent performances in the coming weeks.
However, Guiu could find game time harder to come by when Delap returns to full fitness, which means that a loan move in January cannot be completely ruled out.
While it remains to be seen whether he returns to Sunderland in the future, Guiu will be looking to get one over Le Bris’s side if he gets the chance to feature at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
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