"A great signing" - Claim made as Sunderland plot QPR transfer raid | OneFootball

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Terrace Talk‘ series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Sunderland are facing a crucial summer following a disappointing season in the Championship.

The Black Cats made the controversial decision to sack Tony Mowbray in December despite sitting just outside the play-off places at the time, replacing him with Michael Beale, and it is fair to say the move did not work out.

Beale was an unpopular appointment among Sunderland supporters, and he was sacked in February after winning just four of his 12 games in charge, with Mike Dodds taking over as interim head coach until the end of the season.

Dodds has failed to replicate the impact he made during his previous spell as caretaker following Mowbray's exit, and a poor run of form has seen the Black Cats drop down to 15th in the table.

The appointment of a new manager will be a priority for owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus in the coming weeks, but it seems the Sunderland hierarchy have also turned their attention to rebuilding the squad.

According to SBNation, the Black Cats are interested in signing Queens Park Rangers midfielder Chris Willock.

Willock has scored four goals and provided four assists in 38 appearances this season to help the R's to survival, and with his contract at Loftus Road set to expire in the summer, he is reportedly keen to move on.

FLW's Sunderland fan pundit Jack Austwicke believes Willock would be an excellent signing for the Black Cats, but he says the 26-year-old should not be seen as a replacement for Jack Clarke, who is expected to attract significant transfer interest this summer.

"He's a good player, a little bit older than some of the other players we've got, and he's got a lot of Championship experience as well, I think he's played over 150 Championship games.

"I'd be happy with that signing on a free, he's a good, talented player.

"But if he was the Jack Clarke replacement, I'd probably be a little bit underwhelmed. "For Jack Clarke, we're probably going to get £20-25 million, so his replacement being a free transfer probably wouldn't be the best. "I think what we want to do is splash the money we get on a good replacement. "It might not necessarily be a left-winger, we could spread the money we get for him across the team, obviously we need a centre-forward.

"Chris Willock does predominantly play off the right I'm led to believe, so he doesn't need to be the Clarke replacement, but he'd definitely be a good addition to the squad, and I'd be happy to sign him."

Chris Willock must not be Sunderland's Jack Clarke replacement

It is difficult to disagree with Jack on this one.

Willock would be a great signing for Sunderland, and he would be an incredibly useful addition to the squad, but the Black Cats cannot rely on him to replace Clarke if he departs this summer.

Clarke has been the subject of interest from Burnley, West Ham United, Crystal Palace, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Everton, Bournemouth, Leicester City, Southampton and Brentford throughout the season, and Lazio had two bids rejected in January.

Sunderland will be desperate to keep hold of Clarke, but after an underwhelming season, they could be vulnerable to losing him.

The Black Cats would at least receive a sizeable fee for Clarke's services, and that money must be reinvested in the squad, either to find a replacement for Clarke or to strengthen other areas.