Adnan Januzaj has departed the North East this morning and posted his goodbyes on social media.

Few will miss him on Wearside and his loan stint at Sunderland this season has done little to enhance his already stuttered reputation.

He isn't alone. His loaned colleagues Jason Denayer and Javier Manquillo have also seen their image take a knock with a relegation now on their CV.

But this is the football business. Where a year of failure matters little so long as those who covet a Manchester United / Manchester City / Atletico Madrid young player have their cheque books to hand.

Januzaj will no doubt leave Manchester United this summer and be picked up by a mid-size Premier League club or perhaps a Ligue 1 outfit. Jason Denayer has already been linked with a move to Arsenal as a make-weight for Alexis Sanchez. And Javier Manquillo may get another chance at Atletico by virtue of a FIFA embargo on the Spanish club which means Diego Simeone will be keeping hold of what he's got.

But, all things considered have this trio not been the worst batch of loanees Sunderland have had in this Premier League era? Consider the evidence of those who have been to the Stadium of Light for a temporary stop-over:

A heady list of the good, the bad, the indifferent and the downright obscure for sure. Pick of the bunch Yann M'Vila, Danny Welbeck and Danny Rose most probably with a supporting cast of Jonny Evans, Ki Sung-yeung and the 2014 version of Fabio Borini.

But what of the 2016-17 bunch?

Januzaj was the one who arrived to the greatest fanfare and as a result has proven to be the biggest disappointment. Hooking back up with David Moyes - the manager who had overseen his original break into English football - seems to have helped him little.

Making 23 Premier League appearances in a Sunderland shirt, the 22-year-old Belgian has operated on the right wing in 10 of them, with a similar number of outings more centrally and a smattering on the left.

Three assists and no goals is a paltry return for any winger / attacking midfielder and Januzaj has been a general disappointment with just a few 'good' performances to show for his spell at the Stadium of Light.

The best of him came in that fluke team showing away at Crystal Palace in which he set up two goals but the bulk of Januzaj's performances have been frustrating affairs. A tendency to run into the opposition's full-back and end up on the ground is an irritatingly frequent feature of his play.

Conversely, Jason Denayer arrived at Sunderland with something of an unknown quantity about him for those who hadn't watched much Turkish or Scottish football yet he has been the 'better' of this season's loan trio.

The Manchester City man enjoyed successful spells with Galatasaray and Celtic before Pep Guardiola felt a season out on loan in the Premier League with suit his development.

The Belgian had previously boasted he found the SPL too easy and was a fan-favourite in Turkey but the English top-tier is a difficult beast for a 21-year-old to tame, especially in a side stuck in the bottom three all season.

Seemingly not quite dominant enough to establish himself as a Premier League centre-back, Denayer initially displayed promise as an energetic holding midfielder before being found out in several games.

Sitting too deep and too easily turned by an opponent, Denayer has been a spectator as attackers have waltzed by him in several costly encounters. His future will lie in defence - where he has put in some of his better performances in a Sunderland shirt - but despite his pace, whether he can cut it in the physical Premier League the jury is out.

As for Javier Manquillo, it is impossible to build any case for the Spaniard getting another shot at English football.

Despite seeming to possess the physical characteristics required of a Premier League full-back, the 23-year-old lacks the pace and ability to impact on games. Questionable defensively, Manquillo has been reduced to a bit-part player after losing his place at right-back after starting in Sunderland's first eight games following his summer arrival.

A flurry of recent appearances at left-back following injury to Bryan Oviedo may have reaffirmed his versatility and made his spell at Sunderland appear a little more worthwhile, but Manquillo has been another disappointment.

The Spaniard clearly found the peak of his level last season in Ligue 1 with Marseille with French football containing a host of weaker opponents than he has faced in the Premier League this season. Fittingly, Manquillo would probably do well in the Championship.

So...let us know who you think have made up the most disappointing batch of loanees in Sunderland's decade in the Premier League.