Newcastle star reacts as Dayann Methalie sends message after Sunderland milestone
Newcastle star Aladji Bamba has shown support for Sunderland's Dayann Methalie after he made his Premier League debut against Man City.
Sunderland were beaten 5-3 at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday despite Brian Brobbey netting a hat-trick.
Regis Le Bris' side suffered their third league defeat of the campaign so far to drop to 14th in the Premier League ahead of the international break.
The Frenchman handed a full league debut to compatriot Methalie in Manchester, after he arrived on Wearside from Toulouse in the summer window.
Methalie struggled up against Iliman Ndiaye on his English top flight debut, but still has a way to go to live up to his £25.7million fee.
Newcastle were also interested in the 20-year-old in the summer, and one of their summer signings has now reacted to a new message from his rival.
Dayann Methalie takes to Instagram after his Premier League debut
Young left-back Methalie drew interest from several top European clubs in the summer after impressing for Toulouse.
He made 31 appearances across all competitions for the Ligue 1 club last term, registering two goals and one assist with standout stats compared to other players in his position.
Newcastle had the French youth international down as long-time target to provide competition to Lewis Hall, but Sunderland won the race for his services in mid-August.
Methalie made his Black Cats debut in their Carabao Cup win over Hull earlier this month, then featured for 90 minutes at the Etihad on Sunday.
He took to Instagram on Monday night to send a message to their fans after his Premier League debut, with Newcastle star Bamba leaving a like on the post despite the rivalry between the two clubs.
Methalie's stats show that he can become a Sunderland regular
Black Cats manager Le Bris was positive about Methalie's PL debut after the game, telling reporters: "He’s looked good since he came. The answer is on the pitch so it’s probably the best answer. Because he’s so young he still has room for improvement but his potential is huge.”
The 20-year-old was part of a backline that shipped five goals and he did get booked for an early foul on Ndiaye, but his overall performance was relatively strong.
He completed the most dribbles (3) of any player on the pitch, hit the second-highest top speed (33.7km/h) of any player, had a 90 per cent pass accuracy and completed all three of his attempted dribbles.
Methalie also made eight line-breaking passes and four ball recoveries, while he won four ground duels and two of his three attempted aerial duels.