Sunderland manager Chris Coleman has made his first signing since becoming manager of the club as Brighton & Hove Albion winger Kazenga LuaLua joined the Championship club on a free transfer until the end of the season.
The Black Cats will now be looking to secure further additions in this transfer window to ensure they have enough quality in the squad to avoid relegation into League One.
An experienced addition
LuaLua arrives at the Stadium of Light as a very experienced winger who could prove very valuable to Coleman's squad between now and the end of the season. The Black Cats have lacked quality in the final third so far this season and LuaLua could be the player to change that.
The 27-year-old had been with Brighton since joining in 2010 and scored 17 times in a total of 158 league appearances. Whilst this goalscoring record is certainly not the best, he does have enough quality to be a good addition to Sunderland's squad and could provide the creativity that they so desperately need.
There is no doubt that LuaLua is a very hardworking player with a good attitude but Chris Hughton was unable to give him as much game time as he would have liked this season due to the amount of wide players he already had at his disposal. This resulted in him spending the first-half of this season on loan at Queens Park Rangers. However, he only made two starts for Ian Holloway's side.
It has been a very disappointing season for everyone connected with Sunderland so far, with the club currently sat in the relegation zone on goal difference. Their form has slightly improved under the management of Coleman and he will be hoping that the addition of LuaLua can help push them away from the drop zone.
LuaLua is "up for the fight"
Coleman has spoken about LuaLua's desire for playing regular first-team football again after a frustrating time at the AMEX Stadium and he believes Sunderland is the best place for him to be.
He told the club's official site: "Kaz was determined to come here and get playing first-team football again and I look forward to helping him play the kind of football he is capable of."
He added: "He's quick, skilful and has a lot of experience at this level. He gives us another option in attack and, most importantly, is up for the fight."
There was no doubt that the Black Cats needed to add some attack-minded players to their squad this month, especially due to AFC Bournemouth recalling Lewis Grabban from his loan spell. The 29-year-old striker had been a key player for Sunderland and had found the back of the net 12 times in 20 league appearances.
The signing of LuaLua will go some way to filling the void left by Grabban, but further additions are still needed. Coleman is hoping to seal a loan deal for Derby County striker Chris Martin and this deal looks more likely to happen now that Fulham have said they have no interest in resigning the player.