Alex Neil admits decisions on the futures of some of Sunderland's youngsters will have to be put on ice until he knows which players are due to arrive on Wearside. The Black Cats still need to recruit several players to plug gaps in the squad, and Neil said this week that the club is working to bring in 'one or two' additions before Sunday's Championship opener at home to Coventry City.
But the uncertainty over which players will come in, and when, has a knock-on effect when it comes to deciding whether to keep homegrown players at the Academy of Light or allow them to leave on loan. At present, Ross Stewart is Sunderland's only specialist centre-forward and that has meant that at times during pre-season - including in last night's friendly at Hartlepool United - Neil has deployed Jack Diamond up front.
And until Sunderland have brought in cover and competition for Stewart, Neil cannot commit to either keeping Diamond within his squad or loaning him out again, as was the case last term when he spent virtually the entire campaign at League Two Harrogate Town. Asked what Diamond's future might hold, Neil said: "It's difficult to say, because it really depends on if we manage to get players in the building, doesn't it?
READ MORE: Sunderland pushing for more signings before Championship season begins, says Alex Neil
"It depends what positions come in. With Jack, or any other player, it's hard for me to comment on that really. Naturally, even if players do come in, they need to earn the right [to play]. All we're trying to do by bringing players in is to add competition.
"We're trying to make sure that when they do come in we've got greater depth to the squad so that, like we did last season, we can win games when we need to make changes. But if your changes are not impacting or improving the team, then it becomes tough. As a manager, there's nothing better than to turn around and see that you have five potential matchwinners on the bench."
Sunderland have brought in four new permanent signings over the summer, but two of those - Leon Dajaku and Jack Clarke - were on loan with the club last term. The only true new faces to have arrived so far are centre-backs Daniel Ballard and Aji Alese, who joined from Arsenal and West Ham respectively.
Sunderland's squad is light on numbers and particularly in key areas such as up front, and in the goalkeeping department where academy graduate Anthony Patterson is deservedly set to start the campaign as number one after impressing in the second half of last season, but behind him the club has two goalkeepers in Jacob Carney and Adam Richardson who have both yet to start a league game.
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