A new Premier League club has joined the race to sign this in demand Sunderland star.
Sunderland and sporting director Kristjaan Speakman have a few difficult player situations to manage this summer.
The Black Cats have a number of players attracting interest from England and from abroad, with the likes of Trai Hume and Jobe Bellingham having plenty of interest.
Both players also have interest from the Premier League and from overseas.
Galatasaray have seen a bid for Hume rejected, with Aston Villa also keen on the Northern Ireland international.
Meanwhile, Bellingham is a target for Lazio in this summer’s transfer window, as well as Crystal Palace.
Will Still and RC Lens like Dan Ballard but Sunderland have recently secured a new contract for the central defender.
Speakman and Sunderland won’t part ways with their key stars easily. But with the case of Jack Clarke, who’s out of contract in 2026, a summer sale may be more inevitable.
Ipswich Town join race to sign Jack Clarke at Sunderland
Clarke, 23, is once again attracting Premier League interest after scoring 15 goals in the Championship for Sunderland last season.
Crystal Palace are among the teams interested in Clarke, who’s also had links to the likes of Wolves and Southampton so far this summer.
Now though, iNews report that Ipswich Town are readying an £18million bid for Clarke.
Journalist James Copley says that Ipswich Town have a ‘genuine’ interest in Clarke but that the Black Cats want a fee of £25million for the former Spurs man.
Copley also adds that Tottenham Hotspur are due a 25% sell-on fee for Clarke, following his 2022 permanent move from Spurs to Sunderland.
Will Ipswich Town spend £25million on Jack Clarke at Sunderland
Ipswich Town are spending big this summer. The Tractor Boys have already spent north of £70million and look set to spend some more, though how much more they can realistically spend remains to be seen.
Clarke remains an inexperienced player at Premier League level and so Ipswich may be wary of going beyond £20million for such a player.
But Sunderland are making a good habit of standing firm on their valuations of players.
£25million may be a bit of a highball though with numerous reports this summer and earlier this year having claimed that Sunderland want £20million for Clarke.
If that remains the case, then Ipswich Town aren’t far off that number, so upping their bid by £2million could tempt Sunderland into selling Clarke.
Keeping him for another season would give Regis Le Bris a real outlet in attack for next season. But it would mean that Sunderland have to cash in next summer, with Clarke’s contract out in 2026.