Sports

Talbi Stays and Shines as Sunderland Edge Hull in Carabao Cup

By Today News Hours Editorial Desk

Chemsdine Talbi has ended speculation over a January move away from Sunderland, netting the only goal in a 1-0 Carabao Cup third-round win over Hull City to mark his first start of the season. The winger was a standout performer during Sunderland's 2025-2026 campaign, making 30 appearances and scoring four goals, including a memorable strike in a Tyne-Wear derby victory over Newcastle United. Despite that form, Talbi had featured sparingly at the start of the current season and was omitted from Sunderland's Europa League squad, fuelling reports linking him with a switch to a Saudi Pro League club. However, director of football Florent Ghisolfi confirmed before the Hull match, in comments reported by the Sunderland Echo, that while Talbi "had interest" from elsewhere, he "will stay with us." The Morocco international justified that decision by scoring a brilliant breakaway goal to settle the tie in Sunderland's favour. Talbi was among 11 changes made by manager Regis Le Bris, who praised the strength of his squad following the result. "These guys showed today that they are competitive," Le Bris said. "We played with 11 new players, which means that we have 11 others from the game against Brentford. So we have 22 at the minute, and with that, we can play every competition. With injuries, we'll see, but at the minute, we're happy to go forward."