Roker Roundup: Djilobodji (somehow) finds a new club, & ex-Sunderland defender earns Boro trial

Former players on the move

Sunderland flop Papy Djilobodji is on the move again, as the defender joined Turkish top flight outfit Gazisehir FK on a two-year deal.

The defender was brought to Sunderland by David Moyes for a fee of £8m but was sacked last season after refusing to return to training and then being overweight when he eventually showed up.

The 30-year-old then joined Ligue 1 side Giungamp alongside Didier Ndong in January but his spell at the French club went almost as badly as his move to Sunderland, with the club relegated and the Senegalese international barely featuring after picking up a six-match ban for a horrendous tackle early into his Guingamp career.

Kazenga LuaLua left Luton Town earlier in the month after failing to agree terms on a new contract but has performed a u-turn and signed a new deal with the club yesterday.

LuaLua becomes Luton’s sixth signing of the summer and the third from Sunderland’s disastrous Championship relegation squad of 2017-18 following the arrival of Callum McManaman and Brendan Galloway.

Finally, Sunderland academy product Jak Alnwick is set to join our League One rivals Blackpool after undergoing a medical at Bloomfield Road.

Alnwick left Sunderland in 2008 to join Newcastle United, and is now at Rangers after a spell at Port Vale and will link up with ex-Sunderland manager Simon Grayson at the Seasiders.

Photo by Ian Horrocks/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images

Released defender joins Boro on trial

Sunderland released development squad defender Alex Storey at the end of the season and the 20-year-old has joined Middlesbrough on trial as he looks to find a new club.

The centre-back featured for Boro in their 7-1 under-23 win over Bishop Auckland, as he played the second half in the heart of defence alongside Auxerre defender Iban Cossou.

Storey struggled for playing time after he was promoted to Sunderland’s development squad, with Jack Bainbridge and Brandon Taylor the preferred centre-back pairing last season.