Abline is one of number of potential forward additions currently being assessed by the Black Cats’ recruitment team, which is being led by sporting director Kristjaan Speakman.
The French media are reporting that the Black Cats have tabled a €20m bid for Abline, with the two clubs known to have held a series of discussions in the last few days.
However, the Nantes hierarchy are adamant they will not consider selling Abline for anywhere close to that price, with their president, Waldemar Kita, having previously quoted a price of €45m as a starting point for discussions.
There is confidence a deal could be done for much less than that figure, but Sunderland officials are adamant they will not be significantly raising their current valuation of a player who has scored 17 goals in 94 Ligue 1 appearances since making his senior debut with Rennes in 2021.
Abline had loan spells at Le Havre, Auxerre and Nantes before joining the latter on a permanent basis in 2024 for a reported fee of €12m. He scored nine goals in 33 starts in the French top-flight last season, and recently represented his country at the European Under-21 Championships.
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He was asked about his future, and Kita’s assessment of his transfer value, while on international duty in Slovakia, and said: “Yeah, I saw that. I don’t really know how to react. He has his opinion, so there you go. For now, I am with the Under-21s and I am feeling good. In terms of my personal situation, we’ll see later.”
Abline is just one of a number of forwards Sunderland are currently holding discussions over, with the club seeking to determine which potential option offers the best value for money.
The Black Cats have held detailed talks with Dynamo Kyiv over Ukraine Under-21 international Vladyslav Vanat, who they also value at around the €20m mark. However, like Nantes with Abline, the Dynamo Kyiv hierarchy are refusing to do business at that price. Sunderland have the option of tabling a higher bid, but are currently holding their ground to see how things develop.
They have also been heavily linked with Almeria striker Luis Javier Suarez, although their interest in the 27-year-old is not yet believed to have resulted in a formal offer. Suarez, who is a Colombia international, has scored 33 goals across the last two La Liga seasons.
Suarez, who had a brief non-playing spell at Watford as well as previously representing Granada and Marseille, boasts more experience than either Abline or Vanat, but his age means he would probably have less resale value and he is also understood to be interesting a number of clubs in La Liga.
