Tony Mowbray reveals transfer "remit" that Sunderland will be working to this summer | OneFootball

Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray has revealed that the Championship club's transfer strategy is based on the remit that they want to dominate the ball and to be both "creative and effective".

The Black Cats have impressed in their first season back in the second tier but look likely to miss out on a play-off place as they sit 11th - seven points back with eight games to play.

A lot could change in the final weeks of the season but the 2022/23 campaign has already been a very positive one and they're looking to build on that progress in the summer.

In the last few windows, there has been a distinct focus on signing young, high-potential players that the club can develop and Mowbray has hinted in an interview with Chronicle Live that is unlikely to change.

He also revealed that their strategy is based around building a side that is able to dominate possession and create goalscoring opportunities consistently.

"We work to a bit of a remit," Mowbray explained.

"This club wants to try and dominate the ball, they want to play with the ball the majority of the time, and yet sometimes when you're playing against teams that have just come out of the Premier League it's hard to dominate the ball because they have much better players than you have. They're good with the ball, that's how they play.

"So if you can't dominate the ball, you have to find a different way. Against a lot of teams, we have to sign players that fit into what we are trying to do.

"We want to be an in-possession team if possible, we want to get the fans out of their seats, try and create goalscoring opportunities, try to be creative and effective. Can we create a team that epitomises that? We're trying."

Sunderland are back in action on Friday when they face Burnley at Turf Moor.

The Verdict

The Black Cats' transfer strategy in recent windows has been really impressive and it seems they're going to stick to their task this summer as they look to build on this season's progress.

The temptation would be to make some high-profile signings as they look to close the gap on the top six but it seems they've got a longer-term strategy in mind and that is surely good news.

Their focus on youth has been clear for some time now but it's interesting to get some insight into their other remit - building a side that can dominate possession and play attacking football.