Sunderland have a number of players attracting summer transfer interest, as well as key man Jack Clarke.
Clarke was once again at the centre of transfer speculation in January, with Lazio, Crystal Palace, and West Ham all closely linked with the 23-year-old.
Now, it seems inevitable that the former Leeds United and Spurs man will leave the Stadium of Light this summer, unless of course the Black Cats can earn promotion to the Premier League.
Failure to do so would almost guarantee Clarke’s exit, and it could also prompt two more of Michael Beale‘s players to leave; Dan Ballard and Dan Neil.
Michael Graham reveals Dan Neil and Dan Ballard interest
Both players have had Premier League interest in the past 12 months, with the likes of West Ham being linked with Ballard last summer and Liverpool being linked with Neil, as well as loose interest from Aston Villa.
And with both impressing once again this season, that Premier League interest doesn’t look set to go anywhere, and Michael Graham has confirmed that Sunderland are in ‘definite danger’ of losing the pair this summer.
He posted on X:
Michael Beale facing Sunderland rebuild this summer
Right now, it’s hard to make a case for Sunderland earning promotion.
If they had signed a new striker last month then it might have been a different story, and whilst they did sign some good new players last month, it still feels like they’re missing a huge piece of the puzzle.
So it may be likely that Beale and the Sunderland owners are working towards a big summer rebuild with some potentially key players moving on.
But on a positive note, should Sunderland sell all three of Clarke, Ballard, and Neil, it would be a huge payday, and that money could be reinvested into several top players, so it’s not all bad for Sunderland.
But for Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and Kristjaan Speakman, it’s a case of finding the balance between being that selling club who makes steady profit, and having a team that can challenge for promotion.
Sunderland are just about there now but selling the bulk of their key assets this summer, whilst profitable, would almost reset them in their quest for promotion.
It takes time to put together a team worthy of challenging for the top six and it may be that Sunderland have missed their chance to do that this season, and maybe even next.
The Black Cats are back in action at home to Plymouth Argyle in the Championship this weekend.