David Moyes to take his Sunderland squad to visit Nissan plant

Sunderland may be struggling on the pitch with the team without a Premier League win all season but the City was given a major boost this week when Japanese car giant Nissan announced that its Sunderland plant is to make two new models - a third version of the best-selling Qashqai and, for the first time, the 4x4 X-Trail.

The announcement secures the future of the plant for up to ten years - with Nissan’s presence in the North East said to be worth an estimated £2.8billion a year to the region’s economy.

Around 7,000 people work at the factory itself, while the local supply chain employs around three times as many.

With thousands of Sunderland fans amongst the workforce, Moyes and chief executive Martin Bain have decided to take the squad on a visit.

Moyes said: "We’re all going to the Nissan factory next week, all the players are going.

"We are trying to get closer to the community, we need them.

"We know a lot of the people in this region are factory workers.

"We are trying to get a bit closer, get back to engaging with the people in the villages and so on. I know Martin is desperate to do that."