Sunderland boss Steve Bruce seems to have an uncanny ability to pick out some of the best talented holding midfielders in British football. When he was manager at Birmingham City he acquired the services of Wilson Palacios a Honduran international midfielder on loan. Palacios impressed Bruce enough to sign him when he had left Birmingham and joined Wigan and in one season at the JJB Stadium, Palacios was hugely impressive at the heart of midfield. Manchester United, Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid were all linked with the midfielder before Tottenham moved quickly to secure a £12m deal for the player.
One and a half years on from Palacios leaving Honduras to join Bruce at Wigan, in the summer of 2009, Bruce made another excellent signing. Newly appointed as the manager of Sunderland with an ambitious new board backing him, Bruce was given, for the first time in his career, a healthy amount of money with which to spend on players. Remembering the positive impact Palacios had at Wigan, Bruce felt a similar kind of player was needed for his new charges at the Stadium of Light. However it is hard enough to turn up one gem from abroad without going out and doing it again barely 18 months later.
But then again, Steve Bruce is Steve Bruce isn’t he? And he went out and spent just over £5m on Marseille midfielder and Albanian international Lorik Cana.
Although Cana isn’t a name that would immediately leap to mind when thinking of great European midfielders of the current generation, his impact at Sunderland has been every bit as dynamic as Palacios’ impact was at Wigan. In just over a month after joining the club, Cana had impressed his manager and team mates so much that he had been named captain of the team. His performances in the early season were as vital to Sunderland’s early successes as the goals of Darren Bent and Kenwyne Jones. Cana and another Bruce signing, former Middlesbrough midfielder Lee Cattermole, forged a fantastic understanding at the heart of Sunderland’s midfield and quickly the Albanian earned the acclaim of the Black Cats faithful.
His performances before he was ruled out for several weeks with injury, were of such high standing that several commentators felt that it would only be a matter of time before Cana was snapped up by a top four Premier league side. There has even been quiet speculation linking Cana with a move to Liverpool in the summer. The Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez has first hand experience of Cana’s many abilities after watching him turn in a domineering and goalscoring performance at the heart of Marseille’s midfield in the 2008/09 Champions League against the team from Anfield.
But for the time being Cana will remain on Wearside and Black Cats fans can look forward to Cana and Cattermole recovering from their injuries and playing a leading role once again in leading Sunderland on a charge up the Premier League table.
And Steve Bruce can reflect on the fact that once again, he has pulled a rabbit from the hat.
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