Sunderland 'register interest' in winger ahead of summer transfer window opening

From Friday, clubs across the Premier League and EFL can officially register their new signings ahead of the 2022-23 campaign.

And ahead of the summer window opening, Sunderland have been credited with an interest in winger Josh Murphy from Cardiff City with the former Norwich City player set to become a free agent after spending last season on loan at Preston North End.

Sunderland are reported to have ‘registered their interest’ in the wideman.

Last month, the club’s sporting director Kristjaan Speakman says Sunderland will have a competitive budget in the Championship next season but has warned that a period of transition will be inevitable.

The Black Cats secured their promotion from League One at a fourth time of asking with a 2-0 play-off final win over Wycombe Wanderers at Wembley.

Speakman told the Echo last month: “There is definitely a transition process.

“We’re not going to try and put a halt on any ambition, say that we’re going to try and finish 20th, 15th or 12th or whatever.

“We want to finish as high as we possibly can and will give everything to do that, but we’ve also got to be respectful of the fact that it is a new league and we are taking a new team into it.

“We’ve got to get the blend right in our squad to give us the best chance.

“What we’re not going to do is deviate from the strategy.

“We’re going to stick to what we’re doing, tweak it where we need to and in doing so we’re fairly sure we’ll have a really competitive team.

“You’ve seen our team this season with new players and young players coming in who hadn’t played in the league before, then can sometimes be a bit of adaptation.

“You’ve got to expect that [next season], and naturally with a model like ours, the more time you spend in the Championship the stronger you become,” he added.

The Sunderland squad returns to training later this month.