Sunderland are continuing to pursue multiple targets as they look to sign strikers as competition and cover for Ross Stewart. With the start of the Championship season just ten days away, Scotland international Stewart remains the Black Cats' sole senior number nine.
Sunderland have brought in four new signings so far, but boss Alex Neil has said several times that his squad needs to be strengthened significantly in a number of key areas if it is to be competitive in the second tier. And the threadbare state of Sunderland's centre-forward options is the most obvious deficiency.
Sunderland have been linked with numerous attacking targets, with a move for Everton frontman Nathan Broadhead - who spent a successful season on loan on Wearside last term and helped the club earn promotion via the play-offs - a preferred choice both within the club and amongst supporters. Broadhead was part of the Everton squad that travelled to America as part of the Toffeemen's pre-season preparations, but he did not feature in their games against either Arsenal or Minnesota United.
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Sunderland are also understood to be in the running for Spurs' Troy Parrott, who is likely to be loaned out to a Championship side this season having impressed in his loan spell at MK Dons in League One last term. Parrott, 20, is also reportedly a target for clubs including Middlesbrough, QPR and Preston, and has been involved in Spurs' pre-season games in South Korea earlier this month.
Sunderland have also been touted as a potential suitor for Aston Villa frontman Cameron Archer, although it appears that Steven Gerrard is keen to keep the 20-year-old at Villa Park for the forthcoming campaign as he has caught the eye during their pre-season trip to Australia. Following Sunderland's pre-season defeat at Bradford City on Tuesday night, Neil said the club was involved in discussions with 'numerous' players.
He also acknowledged that many Premier League sides are only now returning from pre-season trips overseas, and said it was impossible to sign players while they are abroad. "There's been ongoing discussions with numerous players, from different clubs, and the minute we get something across the line, which I can assure you we want to get done as soon as possible, then everybody will be made aware," he said.
"At certain times, though, that process cannot get speeded up by what we're trying to do. We're banging the door down as much as we can.
"I don't want to do my business on the last day in August – I want to get my business done as quickly as possible. But as I say, the simple fact, unfortunately for us, is that we're not in control of that.
"There's a lot of teams at the moment, certainly from the Premier League, that are only just coming back from trips abroad. You can't sign a player if he's in a different country."
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