Methven promises cash for signings
SUNDERLAND’S board have committed to supporting manager Jack Ross as best they can in this month’s transfer market.
Last summer the new hierarchy took over a club which had been in real financial trouble and had to make promises to the Football League about their stewardship.
However, on the back of a first half of the season which has put them in the promotion picture without yet being in the automatic places - and hugely-encouraging attendances topped by the 46,039 on Boxing Day - the board has made a conscious decision to try to leave nothing to chance this month.
Director Charlie Methven said: “We had a holding company board meeting of myself, Juan Sartori and Stewart Donald and said on any level it makes sense to say to Jack whatever you need we will give it to you.
“We don’t want to look back in May and say, ‘If we’d just done X or Y...’ and we certainly don’t want
Jack turning around in May and saying ‘I asked for X or
Y and if you’d given me it we would have done it (won promotion).’
“Knowing he is a sensible guy who would not suggest something which was not feasible, we just told him to try and minimise the reasons why we might end up not doing what we need to do.”
Having signed central defender Jimmy Dunne on loan from Burnley on Wednesday, Sunderland are now searching for a centre-forward to replace Jerome Sinclair, who has returned from his loan at Watford. They have bid for Wigan Athletic’s Will Grigg.
After that, Methven said they may go for a third player.
Their reported interest in Joe Willock (left) - who Arsenal are not prepared to loan out this month suggests it could be a midfielder if Sunderland’s recruitment team can find one with the right qualities. Methven added: “We need to be better at set pieces so we went out into the market to find a centreback who is excellent in the air.
“TC (head of recruitment Tony Coton) was given the instruction to find a mobile, 6ft 4in centre-back who would be able to play the way Jack wants to play. There was no point bringing a clogger in.
“The other reason why any team might end up not being promoted is because the goals dry up a bit because players lose a bit of form, a bit of confidence - whatever it might be - so you just need something different to keep the goal meter ticking over and that is what we are out in the market looking for now.
“I would expect us to bring in two and maybe three if nothing happens with Josh Maja.
“There has been no real suggestion of a bid for him. Not only have there been no bids, there has been no significant interest.”
Maja, the Cats’ top-scorer with 15 goals this season, is out of contract in the summer and his agent says he will not be signing another although the player has told the hierarchy he wants to stay.