Not being part of Dick Advocaat’s plans does not make Santiago Vergini a bad player. Nor does scoring the wonder goal you see above, sadly against his own side. Anyone selected to play for Argentina deserves respect.
But trips with the Development Squad to Tow Law – see Sixer’s first-class report at https://safc.blog/2015/07/sixer-says-lawyers-defence-found-lacking-as-development-squad-hit-five/ – are not what he came to the UK for. And, clearly, he’s not a player Advocaat would ever again willingly choose for a Premier League game.
So bravo the club for sending him off to Spain’s La Liga, on loan to Getafe CF, and thanks to Santi for a memory that we can now smile at – and also for the ball skills you often showed.
From the safc.com report;
Argentina international leaves on loan.
Sunderland AFC defender Santiago Vergini has joined Spanish La Liga side Getafe CF on a season-long loan deal with a view to a permanent transfer.
The 26-year-old Argentine arrived on an initial loan deal in 2014, going on to make 51 appearances in 18 months on Wearside.
I fear we may have been a little hasty in showing Vergini the door . Agreed he did have a scary spell but the whole team wasn’t exactly covering themselves in glory at this point and the jitters are similar to confidence , contagious . I wish him well and hope we don’t regret this decision similarly to freezing out Alfred N’Dye .
I thought Santiago was a good footballer, probably a bit too cultured for the Premier League. He reminded me a bit of Claudio Marangoni from the late 70’s. Both had class and quality but had weaknesses which were exposed in England. His (Vergini’s) departure was disappointing – leaving Consett in the back of a Skoda Octavia is not particularly dignified – but he did play an important part in Gus’s Great Escape and he looked competent in the early part of last season. And he will never have to buy a drink in Southampton again!!
Elsewhere on this site I expressed a bit of unease at Vergini’s treatment – my philosophy being that if a player is under contract at the club then he should be at least be considered for selection in times of need and not be totally written off. Look at how much Cattermole and Bardsley contributed to the cause on their return from the wilderness following their off the field peccadilloes.
But it would appear now that a) the club had contingency plans in place for Santi and b) unlike the farce that the Borini saga turned into, things are in place for alternative signings should a first choice deal fall through.
I’ll wait to see how Kaboul stands up to a full season before passing judgement (assuming he signs of course) but the speed at which news of his coming up for a medical was released points to the club having had a ready alternative to Lombaerts lined up.
The club’s policy is not to comment on transfers in or out until deals are done so we can only speculate in the meantime but it seems my reservations may have been a bit premature. Not long ’til Leicester though!