PIERRE EKWAH left Sunderland to join Saint Etienne on loan because Regis Le Bris did not see him regaining a place in the Black Cats' first team this season.

Ekwah made the most-high profile departure from the Black Cats on deadline day at the end of last month, with the Frenchman leaving Wearside to join Ligue 1 side Saint Etienne.

The deal is initially for a season-long loan, with Sunderland understood to be banking a significant loan fee, although the French media have reported Saint Etienne have an option to complete a permanent transfer for €7m next summer.

Last season, Ekwah was a mainstay of Sunderland’s first-choice midfield, making 37 Championship starts and a further three substitute appearances.

However, his face did not really fit under Regis Le Bris, hence the willingness to allow him to leave at the end of last month.

“Pierre’s got three years left on his contract, but if you look at the minutes, he is not in the team and that is the hard facts on it,” explained Sunderland sporting director Kristjaan Speakman. “We were just trying to work out what was the best next step for him.

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“There were a number of opportunities that came up, one of which was Saint Etienne. I think it was a significant loan offer, gave him an opportunity to play in a different environment, in a different league, and enabled us to be able to keep him playing regularly, which arguably he might not have done maybe in the first opening sequence of the season.”

Ekwah’s departure also allowed Sunderland to bring in midfield signings of their own in the closing weeks of the window.

The Black Cats had already brought in Alan Browne as a free agent to play in a central-midfield role, but they also moved for Serbian youngster Milan Aleksic and experienced Ghanaian campaigner Salis Abdul Samed once it became evident that Ekwah would be leaving.

“With his injury, he just ended up being a little bit further down in the selection order,” continued Speakman. “For us, it was a good opportunity and freed up another midfield space for us to bring a different type of player in with Salis and Milan. It was just around us composing what we feel is the right squad for the upcoming season.”