Lazio do not appear to be giving up in their pursuit of Sunderland winger Jack Clarke.
It was reported over the weekend that Lazio had made a surprise £15 million bid for Jack Clarke ahead of Thursday’s deadline.
The attacker has been the subject of huge interest this season after netting 13 goals in 29 games, though a majority of speculation had come from Premier League clubs such as West Ham, Burnley and Brentford.
There had been no official offers made for Clarke though, until Lazio joined the race last week.
Sunderland were quick to turn down their bid for the 23-year-old, but journalist James Copley has now claimed that Lazio have come back in with a second offer.
He wrote on X: “Understand that Lazio have come in with a second bid for Sunderland star Jack Clarke after their initial approach was knocked back. 16 goal contributions for the former Leeds and Spurs man already this season. 13 goals with 3 assists. 2.5 years left on present deal.”
It’s unclear how much Lazio have offered for Clarke this time round, though journalist Michael Graham has claimed that even a fee of over £20m would be ‘unlikely’ to tempt the Black Cats into selling before the deadline.
Sunderland Echo have also reported that Clarke is ‘happy’ on Wearside but does have aspirations to play at a higher level in the near future.
A move to Lazio doesn’t seem very close at this stage, while Clarke is likely to prefer a move to the English top flight in the summer rather than a switch to the Serie A.
Maurizio Sarri’s side are already looking at alternatives to the Leeds United academy product, with Fabrizio Romano claiming that they have approached Plymouth Argyle over a move for Morgan Whittaker.
The 23-year-old has 15 goals and six assists in the Championship this term, while they are also desperate to keep hold of their star man and may price Lazio out of a January deal.
The Italian club are currently relying on Felipe Anderson and Gustav Isaksen on either side of the attack, with the pair netting three goals and providing seven assists in all competitions between them this season.
Can Sunderland expect to keep hold of Jack Clarke?
It’s unclear how much Lazio are prepared to pay for either Jack Clarke or Morgan Whittaker, but it seems like neither club are willing to budge and will try their best to avoid losing such key players so late on in the window.
Sunderland would probably be concerned if the likes of West Ham and Brentford had come in for Clarke at this point, but such a spontaneous move across Europe may be a bit too much for the attacker.
There has been talk of a potential late swoop for Clarke though, so it could be a very nervy transfer deadline day on Wearside.