Yann M'Vila joins Sunderland on season-long loan from Rubin Kazan

Sunderland manager Dick Advocaat hasn't been deterred by the negative headlines, signing Yann M'Vila on a season-long loan.

The club signed the 25-year-old defensive midfielder from Russian club Rubin Kazan on Thursday, marking Advocaat's fifth signing of the summer. The Tyne-Wear club also has the option of making the transfer permanent at the end of the loan period.

Despite possessing undeniable talent, M'Vila suffered an underwhelming loan stint at Inter Milan last season and has been plagued by incredulous off-the-pitch issues that left him desperate to depart Rubin.

He was recently accused of trashing his rented house while the details of a loan spell at Dynamo Moscow - who he was reportedly set to join before Sunderland hijacked the deal - were finalised. There are also allegations of M'Vila keeping an axe for protection as a result of Pavel Konovalov, Dynamo's head of security, extorting money from foreign players.

Such reports, however, are hopefully now a thing of the past.

"I'm very happy to be a Sunderland player," M'Vila said. "I had a very good feeling training with the team; every player welcomed me and the feeling was very good with them so I'm excited for the start of the season. I've also wanted to play in the Barclays Premier League for a long time so I'm very happy to be here."

M'Vila's move to the Stadium of Light marks yet another unexpected switch in a career that has taken him to the farthest corners of Europe.

After singning, M'Vila took part in a training session ahead of Sunderland's first fixture of the Premier League season, which goes Saturday at Leicester City.

Here's video of M'Vila's first day at Sunderland: