Sunderland had a hectic, and somewhat frustrating transfer deadline day, and one target they missed out on has already proven he is a player the Black Cats may regret letting go.
As the January transfer window progressed, it became very clear that Sunderland were looking for attacking reinforcements to supplement their promotion charge.
While Wilson Isidor continues to thrive under Regis Le Bris, there is always the risk that the striker will get injured and leave the Black Cats short.
In the end, Sunderland signed an injured Jayden Danns on loan from Liverpool, but that may not have been the best call in the long-run.
Adam Armstrong gets off to a strong start for West Brom
In the final days of the window, it emerged that Sunderland were hoping to strike a loan deal for Southampton forward Adam Armstrong, either instead of or alongside Danns’ move to Wearside.
However, Armstrong was not keen on the switch, largely because of his allegiance to his boyhood club, Newcastle United. In the end, the 27-year-old opted to join West Brom on loan, linking up with former Sunderland manager, Tony Mowbray, in the process.
We suspect Sunderland could regret not signing two strikers during the window, but only time will tell. Still, one thing became clear this weekend: Armstrong would have been a great signing.
The experienced forward has a sterling record in the Championship already, and he’s now got off the mark with West Brom on his debut, with a crucial goal in the 2-1 win over Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday lunchtime.
Sunderland settled for second-best with Jayden Danns
It remains to be seen how much of an impact Jayden Danns can have at Sunderland when he finally returns from injury.
We spoke to a Liverpool expert who claimed Danns is an exciting talent that can deliver plenty of goals in the second tier, but we still need to see proof of this when the time comes.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  LeedsLeeds | 31 | 19 | 9 | 3 | 62 | 19 | 43 | 66 |
| 2 |  Sheff UtdSheffield Utd | 31 | 20 | 6 | 5 | 43 | 22 | 21 | 64 |
| 3 |  BurnleyBurnley | 31 | 16 | 13 | 2 | 37 | 9 | 28 | 61 |
| 4 |  SunderlandSunderland | 31 | 16 | 11 | 4 | 47 | 28 | 19 | 59 |
| 5 |  West BromWest Brom | 31 | 11 | 14 | 6 | 41 | 28 | 13 | 47 |
| 6 |  BlackburnBlackburn | 31 | 13 | 6 | 12 | 35 | 31 | 4 | 45 |
Unfortunately, there’s no denying that Sunderland took a gamble on the youngster, while signing someone like Armstrong would have been a surefire guarantee of success.
The West Brom man could have been the difference between Sunderland landing in the play-offs and securing a top-two spot when the final Championship table is confirmed at the end of the season. Right now, it seems Mowbray got the winning hand with Armstrong. Hopefully, Danns can prove us wrong.