Baggies land attacking midfielder from Sunderland
ALBION have broken their transfer record to sign Sunderland attacking midfielder Stephane Sessegnon in a beat-the-deadline deal.The 29-year-old has penned a three-year contract after the two Barclays Premier League clubs agreed an undisclosed fee.
Sessegnon passed a medical this afternoon and will wear the No.29 shirt.
His transfer fee surpasses the amount the Baggies agreed with Reading for Shane Long in August 2011.
Sessegnon arrives with a proven Premier League pedigree and started all-but-seven of Sunderland’s league matches in the past two seasons, scoring 14 goals.
He started his career in his homeland with Requins de’Atlantique before moving to Europe in 2004.
Sessegnon spent two seasons in the Parisian suburbs with Creteil before moving on to Le Mans, with whom he reached the semi-finals of the French League Cup.
After being snapped up by Paris Saint-Germain, he helped his new club reach the 2008/09 UEFA Cup quarter-finals in his first season. His form during that term also saw him named in the Ligue One Team of the Year.
Sessegnon went on to win the 2010 Coupe de France before earning a £6million move to Sunderland the following January.
In his first full season at the Stadium of Light, Sessgnon finished as the club’s eight-goal joint-leading scorer and top of the assists table to secure the Mackems’ Player-of-the-Season Award.
The 5ft8in ace has 40 appearances and eight goals to his name for his country and featured in the 2008 and 2010 African Nations Cups.
In total, Sessegnon has made 294 career league appearances, including 30 as a substitute, scoring 42 goals.