Former Sunderland forward Louis Saha has opened up on his regret at how his very brief time at the Stadium of Light panned out.
Saha enjoyed 13 years in the Premier League across goal-laden spells with Fulham, Manchester United, Everton and Tottenham after an initial failed loan move at Newcastle United.
The ex-France international joined Sunderland on a free transfer in the summer of 2012 and there was hope he could continue his goalscoring exploits on Wearside.
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But after 14 appearances yielded no goals for the Black Cats, Saha left the club after just six months to make the move to Serie A outfit Lazio.
Reflecting on his time in the north-east, Saha admits he didn't 'enjoy' his time at Sunderland after failing to have the impact he wanted. Nonetheless, he is hopeful his former club can win promotion back to the Premier League after a solid start to their return to the Championship this season.
"I really would love to see Sunderland back in the Premier League - they’re a great club and it’s a brilliant town," Saha told Boyle Sports.
"The Newcastle-Sunderland rivalry is brilliant, too. But I didn’t play that long for Sunderland and I didn’t score, so I didn’t really enjoy my time as much as I did at other clubs.
"Most times I had a new club I really enjoyed it and adapted well. It was a shame I didn’t have the impact I wanted at Sunderland. But they’re in good position and three or four points behind the promotion places so I hope they go up as they belong in the Premier League."
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