Sunderland AFC transfer news: Hamburg keeping tabs on Cats midfielder

Kirchhoff joined Sunderland in January from Bayern Munich for a bargain £750,000, signing an 18-month deal on Wearside.

Versatile Kirchhoff - who played a key role in keeping Sunderland up last season - can play in either midfield or defence and German side Hamburg are understood to be keeping tabs on him.

Hamburg are third bottom in the Bundesliga after 14 games.

Kirchhoff's current deal runs out at the end of this season and manager David Moyes has made it clear that talks with those players out of contract next summer are not on his agenda until Sunderland's Premier League fate is known.

With Sunderland again battling relegation, Moyes is wary of the club committing itself before knowing which league they will be playing in next year.

Moyes recently told the Echo: "No contract talks have even flickered in my head.

"Even if there was I would say 'no, you are all waiting until the end of the season'.

"What would be the point of us doing anything now? I don’t care who it is.

"I’m not interested until the end of the season, or certainly until we know what our league status is going to be."

Kirchhoff, who has also played for Mainz and Schalke, has previously said he wants to extend his stay on Wearside.

The 26-year-old has only made eight appearances so far this season after suffering from two separate hamstring injuries.

He returned to the Sunderland squad for the recent win over Leicester City and was in the side beaten 1-0 by Chelsea at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday.

Kirchhoff was subbed after less than an hour by Moyes as he continues to build up his match fitness.