Preston North End should move fast to sign Liam Millar on a permanent deal in the summer, before Sunderland can use him to replace Jack Clarke.
The former Tottenham Hotspur joined the club on a four-year deal in 2022, following a loan deal at the Stadium of Light, and immediately impressed as part of an impressive front three, alongside Amad Diallo and Ross Stewart.
However, the two forwards left the club in the summer, forcing Clarke to take on a more important role as the club’s main scorer for this season, a role which he has taken in his stride, despite a change of manager in December.
With 15 goals and four assists in the league already, the former Spurs winger is one of the highest scorers in the league, and will undoubtedly be targeted by a number of top clubs this summer.
It seems likely that Clarke will exit the club in the summer, which will force Sunderland to find a replacement for their top scorer before the start of the new campaign in August.
The forward was linked with a move away from the Black Cats in January, with clubs from both the Premier League and Serie A reportedly interested in signing Clarke.
West Ham and Lazio have been linked with a £20 million move for the forward, and Sunderland will find it hard to turn down that kind of money, especially if their poor form continues following the sacking of manager Mick Beale.
Meanwhile, Clarke’s agent, Ian Harte, recently explained to the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast that he hopes Sunderland will sell Clarke in the summer, which is the biggest admission yet that his future may lie outside the Stadium of Light.
“Hopefully this summer we’ll probably see Jack moving. Where it may be, we don’t know just yet, but he’s in a good place,” Harte said.
“Last summer Burnley came in and bid to Sunderland to try and take Jack. Sunderland didn’t feel the valuation was high enough and they turned it down.
“It’s flattering when big Italian teams are coming in and looking at a player like Jack, but the bread and butter is you’ve got to go out and do it week and week out at Sunderland and hopefully he’ll continue to do that.”
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