5 players Sunderland AFC must target if promoted as Wes Brown sends clear Premier League warning | OneFootball

The Black Cats are set for the Championship play-offs to earn a place in the top-flight after eight years away

Sunderland have secured their place in the Championship play-offs for this season in the midst of an impressive maiden campaign under French boss Regis Le Bris, and they will be anticipating a huge summer of incomings and outgoings from their squad if they do seal promotion next month.

The Black Cats were in the race for automatic promotion at the start of the campaign, but despite falling away from the top two, they have been able to maintain their form and are now preparing for the play-offs as the regular season edges closer to an end.

Regis Le Bris has built an impressive core of young, talented players who will undoubtedly fetch some sizeable transfer fees when they are sold on from the Wearside club soon, but Sunderland will hope that is not this summer if they are able to win the play-offs at Wembley in late May.

Their squad is certainly a top one in the second-tier, but improvements will need to be made in the summer if they are back in the Premier League. Former Black Cats defender Wes Brown has warned their hierarchy that they will need to "change the whole team" if they do go up.

With that in mind, FLW have picked out five players that Sunderland should look to sign this summer if they are promoted, to help try and bridge the gap between the Championship and the Premier League.

Marc Guiu

Chelsea striker Marc Guiu has long been touted to become one of the top strikers in world football, but his progress is currently stalling at Stamford Bridge, and it would surely make a lot of sense for him to join a club like Sunderland this summer if they are back in the top-flight for next season.

Guiu started out at Barcelona's La Masia academy, and progressed his way up their youth teams to make his first-team debut in 2023, where he scored the winning goal in 23 seconds and became the youngest and fastest debutant to score for the Catalan giants in La Liga at 17 years and 291 days of age.

He joined Chelsea for €6 million last summer, amid Barça's financial issues, and he has scored six times in as many Europa Conference League games this season, with seven more appearances in other competitions. The Spaniard looks set to have a future at Stamford Bridge, but could be allowed out on loan in the summer.

Sunderland would surely be an ideal destination for him in the coming months, provided they are in the Premier League. He needs to play regularly at 19-years-old, and would fit their strategy of developing young players, while adding a great forward option to provide competition to Wilson Isidor up front.

Abdul Fatawu

Abdul Fatawu has endured an injury-hit campaign at Leicester City this season, but despite their relegation, he is no doubt a player who deserves to continue proving himself in the top-flight beyond the summer.

The right-winger first moved to the Foxes on loan from Sporting CP in August 2023, and he impressed in the Championship last season with six goals and 13 assists as they won the league title at a canter.

He was expected to be a key part of their Premier League squad this term, and notched two assists in 11 league games at the start of the campaign before a serious knee injury ruled him out for the rest of the season in November.

The 24-cap Ghanaian international is certainly good enough to stay in the top-flight, however, and would surely fit Sunderland well if they were promoted this summer, given his age, profile and position, which the Black Cats will likely be looking to bolster in the transfer window.

Hayden Hackney

Central midfielder Hayden Hackney has been a real success story so far for Middlesbrough, after he first joined their academy at under-10 level and worked his way up to the first-team to make his professional debut in 2021.

The 22-year-old has become one of the club's key players over the last few seasons since, as a deep-lying playmaker, and he has been a regular performer in the middle of the park under Michael Carrick, while earning transfer interest from European giants FC Porto for his standout showings.

Boro reportedly rejected bids of up to £10m from Porto for Hackney in the last January window, but more interest in his services is surely set to commence in the summer, especially if they are beaten to promotion through the play-offs by North East rivals Sunderland.

The Black Cats could lose either of Jobe Bellingham or Chris Rigg soon, following the widespread rumours of their potential summer exits, and so may well be in the market for a player like Hackney that can dictate the tempo of the game and make things happen from midfield.

Japhet Tanganga

Millwall centre-back Japhet Tanganga has been a real hit at The Den since his initial loan move last January, which was then turned into a permanent transfer in the summer.

He looks ready to move back to the Premier League this summer, especially to a potentially newly-promoted side like Sunderland could be.

The ex-Spurs man has been one of the second-tier's best defenders this season, which is even more impressive considering he has been playing for a club that has largely been sat mid-table throughout the campaign.

He has been a mainstay at the heart of the Lions defence, with 40 appearances and two goals to his name so far.

Premier League outfit Wolves were believed to be tracking him prior to the January window, while the likes of West Ham, Ipswich Town and Southampton have also been linked with a move.

The Black Cats could struggle to compete on a financial level with those clubs if they were still in the Championship, but being in the top-flight would be a huge boost to their chances of landing him in the summer.

Yukinari Sugawara

Right-back Yuki Sugawara joined Southampton from Dutch side AZ Alkmaar last summer, and he has been one of the few players at the club to actually impress at times this season in his maiden Premier League campaign.

The 24-year-old's current Saints contract runs until 2028, but he may well depart this summer with Italian giants Napoli reportedly interested.

Sunderland could certainly do a lot worse than sign him if they are preparing for the top-flight, especially since he has a full season of experience in a relegation battle.

Sugawara is a strong, versatile full-back who likes to get forward, which suits the way Le Bris sets up with inverted wingers.

He would provide some impressive competition to Trai Hume if he were to join, and would surely be happy to stay playing in the Premier League, even if it was at the other end of the country.