Sunderland have struck gold on star worth more than Bellingham & Le Fee

Despite picking up a big 3-2 win away at Middlesbrough recently, Regis Le Bris will be concerned with how fragile his Sunderland side have looked at home over the past few matches at the Stadium of Light.

Indeed, the promotion-chasing Black Cats have had to settle for two 2-2 draws on the spin against bottom-of-the-table Plymouth Argyle and Tom Cleverley’s Watford in their last couple of home outings, with the Hornets then on the receiving end of a 4-0 loss to Leeds United directly after this score draw.

Le Bris did have to make do with no Jobe Bellingham last time out owing to injury, with the 19-year-old now back in contention for a start against Luton Town tonight, with a hope in the air that the ex-Birmingham City man can work his magic alongside Enzo Le Fee to pick up a victory.

Le Fee and Bellingham’s importance to Sunderland

Bellingham was present during that aforementioned barnstorming display at the Riverside Stadium, with the midfield starlet registering two key passes across the duration of the exciting contest, on top of successfully winning seven duels centrally.

Bellingham did ultimately take a back-seat for Le Fee to strut his stuff, however, but with his seven league contributions this season so far, he could still be the difference-maker versus the Hatters.

But, it would be the dazzling performance of his French teammate that would steal the headlines, as the £19m-rated ace more than lived up to his previous high price tag with some moments of sublime trickery across the 3-2 win.

He was equally as enthralling to watch versus Watford too, with three key passes notched up, but Le Bris’ men would have to settle for an unsatisfactory point.

Amazingly, despite Le Fee’s well-known price tag and Bellingham’s reported bumper £20m valuation, there is another star in the midfield ranks who is now worth even more according to some fresh transfer rumours.

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The “special” Sunderland star worth more than Bellingham and Le Fee

Whilst Le Bris does have a star-studded main XI for the most part, his bench does see him rely on some up-and-coming talents from the U21 picture, with three academy products sitting among the substitutes against the Hornets.

This trio of starlets will all hope one day they can replicate the insane rise of a certain Chris Rigg, with the 17-year-old now front and centre of Le Bris’ team week in week out.

He isn’t just being chucked in at the deep end for the sake of it, however, with Rigg now up to four goals and one assist for the season in the demanding Championship, which is a promising tally for a teenage sensation still very much learning the ropes of the senior game.

This has caught the eye of a number of higher-up suitors, therefore, as Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United all fight it out to try and win the 17-year-old’s services down the line, with the standout Black Cats number 11 now worth a whopping £25m according to new reports over the weekend.

It has been quite the remarkable rise for Sunderland’s cream of the crop, with Rigg only worth £250k in October 2023 as per Transfermarkt, to now be worth a staggering £25m.

He was once heralded as “special” by Sky Sports’ Dougie Critchley, with this extravagant price tag perhaps now in play when you consider who has previously been birthed from the Black Cats’ youth structure in the likes of Jordan Henderson and Jordan Pickford.

Rigg will no doubt want to embrace the same lofty heights that the pair have managed to achieve, meaning he could be Sunderland’s next big sale this approaching summer, even if his boyhood side climb up to the Premier League.

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