Sunderland will have to fight it out with Premier League sides if they want to land one of the most deadly young strikers in Europe.
The Black Cats have enjoyed a successful start to the January transfer window so far, with Enzo Le Fee arriving on loan to boost their promotion hopes.
Regis Le Bris is building a very exciting project at Sunderland with youth at the heart of it all, and one transfer target fits right into that approach.
But, if Sunderland hope to sign Daniel Cummings from Celtic, they’ll need to offer him something more tantalising than their Premier League counterparts can.
Daniel Cummings is wanted by Brighton and West Ham, but Celtic want him to sign a new deal
Cummings was first linked with Sunderland back in November of last year, with the Celtic youngster in red-hot form for the Scottish outfit’s B-team. He’s now scored 24 goals in 24 games for the youth side this season.
Naturally, that kind of output has attracted attention across Europe, and now, according to Fabrizio Romano on Twitter/X, Sunderland face competition from West Ham and Brighton in the race to sign Cummings.
He wrote: “West Ham and Brighton are both keen on signing 18-year-old Celtic striker Daniel Cummings, with Celtic pushing for him to stay and sign new deal. 24 goals in 24 games this season for Cummings, out of contract in summer 2025.”
With Cummings’ current deal running out, clubs are now allowed to discuss pre-contract terms with the youngster ahead of a potential move in the summer.
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Can Sunderland compete with Premier League suitors?
Obviously, the lure of a Premier League club is huge for any player, and turning down either West Ham or Brighton to join Sunderland would be a big gamble for Cummings at this stage of the season.
Sunderland are on track for promotion, but there is no telling what league they will be in next season, so if Cummings were to commit to the Black Cats now, he would potentially be playing in the Championship next year.
However, that might not be the worst thing for him on a very selfish level. Cummings would be unlikely to go straight into the first-team of any established Premier League side, whereas at Sunderland — a club now renowned for nurturing young talent — he could well get substantial minutes under his belt.
Surely, that would factor into Cummings’ thinking when considering his next move, and hopefully, we’ll see the lethal Scotsman in the Sunderland squad come the summer.