Sunderland are unlikely to win the race for Tom Cannon this summer.
That’s according to journalist Alan Nixon, who has reported that the Black Cats won’t sign the striker ‘unless they come late and serious’.
Tony Mowbray’s side have long been linked with a move for the Everton youngster, who netted eight goals during a brief loan spell with Preston North End last season.
Cannon’s success at Deepdale has attracted interest from across the Championship and Everton have now agreed to send him back out on loan – though only for a £1 million fee.
Nixon recently reported that it was Preston that were looking the most likely to meet the Toffees’ demands, though Sunderland were still one of a long list of clubs chasing his signature.
However, it now looks like they have fallen far behind in their pursuit. Nixon’s claim suggests the Black Cats would have to offer a significant loan fee to be in with a chance of landing Cannon.
Everton were expected to make a decision on the 20-year-old’s future today but Nixon has now revealed that they have delayed the loan move until they can bring in their own attackers – perhaps giving Sunderland more of a chance to push for a deal themselves.
Sunderland are running out of options if they miss out on Tom Cannon
While the club don’t quite seem to understand it, Sunderland still need a proven striker with Championship experience – not another teenager who has ten minutes of senior football under his belt.
Tom Cannon was a very solid option for the Wearside outfit and it is now hard to see where they are going to get this goalscorer from.
The likes of Ellis Simms, Jerry Yates and Ashley Barnes have already been snapped up by Championship rivals because Sunderland weren’t willing to compete for these type of players.
Now our options are extremely limited, we have one fit striker and now have two defeats in two games. It’s not looking good.