Cats’ game of patience on targets

PHIL Parkinson is targeting seven to eight new signings at Sunderland this summer - but few are expected to join officially any time soon.

Sunderland’s players are currently all on furlough, the club topping up their wages from the Government’s Job Retention Scheme to ensure they are on full pay – something the club is not doing anymore for non-playing staff.

It is hoped EFL meetings in the coming week will finally bring an end to uncertainty over next season, with clubs hopeful of agreeing a date to start the 2020-21 campaign.

September 12 seems the most likely of those dates right now.

Manager Parkinson – one of the few staff members not on furlough – is planning his summer recruitment drive and inside the Academy of Light there is a growing confidencet the Black Cats can utilise the market this summer to build a very good squad.

Patience could be key, with the feeling being so many free agents could create a market where towards the end of the window players start lowering their wage demands and expectations in order to find themselves new clubs.

Parkinson has suggested there could even be players released from lower-end Premier League clubs whom the Wearsiders could target.

Parkinson has suggested that one signing is close.

It is believed he is referring to a permanent deal for loanee Bailey Wright, who made a huge impression last term despite his season-ending injury after just five games.

Beyond that, Sunderland are unlikely to complete signings until they are back for pre-season because to do so would mean paying a player for a month while they sat at home unable to do anything.

Government rules would prevent them from signing someone and placing them on furlough with the rest of the squad.

Instead, Parkinson and Sunderland’s recruitment staff are likely to be speaking to targets and sorting ‘gentleman’s agreements’ with signings, who would then join officially when the players can return for pre-season training.