Chris Young of the Sunderland Echo is reporting that Sunderland manager Dick Advocaat is hoping a loan move to Leeds from Will Buckley will make other Sunderland players question whether they should also go out on loan.
Buckley signed for Leeds United last Friday on a three-month loan deal during the emergency loan window for Football League clubs. This meant that he made his debut versus Birmingham at the weekend and therefore, has already begun to get game time, which is something other Sunderland players will want at the moment.
There is an option in the loan deal that will allow Leeds to sign the 25-year-old winger on a permeant contract for £1m in January, meaning that Sunderland have now managed to shift on one of their ‘fringe’ players. However, there are still a few players not in the first team picture who probably need to move on. Liam Bridcutt, Charis Mavrias and Valentin Roberge are all still at the club and Advocaat will hope he can move them on either on loan or on permanent deals in January.
There has already been talk of two of those players making switches away from the Stadium of Light. Liam Bridcutt has been linked to a number of Championship clubs, however, the stumbling block has been his high wages, which he will need to drop if he wants first team football.
Mavrias has also been linked with a move away as Sunderland have reportedly been in negotiations with an unnamed Greek side in preparation for a January departure for the Greek international.
Speaking to the Sunderland Echo, manager Dick Advocaat had this to say:
“Buckley has already gone. “Hopefully some more will go out. “As I’ve said before, I would want to play if I was in that position.”
Sunderland are also willing to let another player leave the club. Danny Graham. The former Swansea striker has his game time limited after the signings of Fabio Borini and Ola Toivonen in the summer and may have to look elsewhere for football.
