Aiden O'Brien, Bailey Wright and Stewart Donald sale latest: Phil Smith answers YOUR Sunderland takeover and transfer questions

As part of our weekly Q&A with readers, Phil Smith addresses the big talking points from the Stadium of Light with Stewart Donald in a period of exclusivity with a potential buyer, while work goes on to improve the squad ahead of the September 12 start date in League One.

Q ‘James Robertson: Is William Storey, of Rich Energy, genuinely involved or is it just a well timed PR stunt from him and his team?’

PS: He is certainly talking a lot for someone supposedly under an NDA, and there have been some remarkable claims made that stretch credibility, to put it mildly.

Whether he has the backers and is genuine is impossible to say, though the interest has been met with the same scepticism from most you speak to as it has from the fanbase.

What we do know is that he is not a buyer who has an exclusivity agreement at this stage so whatever the intentions, there are no advanced talks at the moment.

Which effectively means for now, anything else is just noise.

Q ‘Aaron Showler: Are any signings close and what’s happening with Bailey Wright?’

PS: Yes, there’s definitely a bit more movement now and I’d expect to see some progress in the not too distant future.

The setting of a date for the new season and a bit more clarity (though there’s still an awful lot uncertain) on how things such as stadium capacities etc. might look has helped.

Despite the takeover talk and the significant changes behind the scenes of late, recruitment work is happening and I’d expect to see some results from that sooner rather than later.

The deal to bring in Bailey Wright is taking a little longer than we expected but there isn’t any alarm behind the scenes.

He’s still the top defensive target, he wants to stay (or rejoin, depending on how you look at it!) and there’s confidence that that’s exactly what will happen.

How long we have to wait I’m not sure but I’d still be very surprised if he wasn’t holding the scarf somewhere along the way.

Q: ‘Andy Barron, via our SAFC WhatsApp service: In the period of exclusivity and NDA's how long does that normally last and when can we find out who people are who are looking to buy us’

PS: The club have not commented on the takeover talks but if there is a party in a period of exclusivity, then obviously that would mean an NDA is in place and enforces confidentiality.

The club have previously said they can’t comment on anyone who has an NDA in place.

Whoever it is, it essentially means they now have priority in getting a deal done.

We have of course been here twice before with Sunderland under the current regime, with both Mark Campbell’s group and FPP.

If the intention is to complete before the start of a new season, then that clearly leaves a very tight timeframe to conduct due diligence and finalise a deal

So far, there has been very little concrete information on who the buyers are.

We all wait with very keen interest to see what comes next.

Q: ‘Has Phil Parkinson been told what the budget is for the coming season and is he happy with it?’

PS: It’s certainly been a challenging summer, not just because of the COVID-19 pandemic and what’s been happening behind the scenes.

The departures of Richard Hill and Tony Coton considerably alters the decision-making structure at the club and clearly, recruitment and negotiations are a big part of that.

So it’s not been straightforward but there is certainly work going on now in terms of adding to the squad and the manager has been right at the heart of that process.

It does feel different (despite the takeover talk) to the start of last pre-season, when the club was in stasis as everyone waited for the talks with Mark Campbell to reach a resolution.

At the moment, whatever is going on in terms of a deal doesn’t seem to be preventing the day-to-day work and so the manager seems relatively relaxed.

Q: ‘Thoughts on the Aiden O’Brien talk? Would rather we went for Gnanduillet personally.’

PS: I think they are very different players, to be honest.

O’Brien is versatile and has played a lot of his football for Millwall off the left flank. So I think he could play anywhere across the front four (or three, in Parkinson’s currently preferred shape).

He covers a lot of ground, has plenty of experience in both this division and the one above, so he certainly fits the bill.

Q: ‘By the time the season starts can we realistically have a squad capable of challenging at the top? Can't imagine any investment during the sale process, new owners won't have time to buy, can see the squad being made up of free and youth players.’

PS: It’s a really interesting question.

If (as I expect) the deal for Bailey Wright gets done, then you are basically back to the XI that played the vast majority of the campaign after the turn of the year.

Of course, you’re missing Jon McLaughlin and he will be a big miss even if Lee Burge looked more than capable when called upon last season, especially in the cups.

That XI did OK and you would expect to be competitive.

Of course, that isn’t good enough for a third season in League One so as you allude to, it becomes about doing the business that can lift you up a level.

In terms of investment, it depends how you define it.

No, I certainly don’t expect there to be significant fees spent without a takeover.

In the current climate, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re not investing. Wright, for example, is coming from a Championship side and so it’s not an insignificant commitment if the deal runs a couple of years.

Sunderland should be able to challenge for the top, and make additions that can be important at this level without major investment.

The question is whether the structure is in place to do that and that’s what we will find out over the coming weeks.

Q: ‘How far from being sold is the club? Fans need someone who will put both the club and academy first and foremost. It's no good selling players for next to nothing. Most of the players who have gone should have been tied down to Sunderland.’

PS: The timeline set for a sale appears to be ahead of a new season, so we will watch that with interest.

The academy certainly should be at the heart of any plans any new owner makes.

Particularly in the new era of shrinking budgets, and the likelihood of limited squad sizes and salary caps coming into force, academies are going to be more important than ever.

The appointment of a new academy manager is crucial.

As we learned in our academy series this week, there is a pressing need to build strong relationships with players and parents so that when the big clubs come knocking, they want to stay at Sunderland even if there is more money on offer elsewhere.

The U18s and U23s improving has to be a big part of that, too, as no one wants to play (and try to develop) in teams that are losing heavily on a regular basis.

More broadly, there needs to be real thought and time given to the first-team pathway and how to make it more reliable and clear.

It should be a major strength for Sunderland at this level but it hasn’t been to the extent it should have been, and the player sales of recent years mean it won’t in the next couple of seasons, either.

There’s a massive cultural shift that needs to happen in the long term, and some urgent investment and attention required in the short term.

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