Everton striker Ellis Simms on brink of move to Sunderland's Championship rivals

Ellis Simms is closing in on a move to Sunderland's Championship rivals Coventry City.

The Sky Blues have agreed a fee in the region of £8 million with Everton, and the 22-year-old is expected to undergo a medical and complete the formalities of the move on Friday. The striker did not attend the first day of Everton's pre-season programme.

Simms proved to be a hugely popular loanee on Wearside during the first half of last season, scoring seven goals before being surprisingly recalled to Goodison Park at the start of the January transfer window. Sunderland held out hope that he could return in the latter stages of the month and were interested in his availability this summer, but Everton's valuation had made any deal highly unlikely.

The question was whether any Championship side would engage with that asking price, with Simms entering the final year of his deal and Everton needing to raise funds to fund their summer rebuild.

Coventry City are preparing to sell star striker Viktor Gyokeres to Sporting Lisbon for a fee in the region of £20 million, leaving them with a clear advantage over the other clubs interested in Simms. Coventry will pay a much smaller fee initially, with the value to be realised dependent on add-ons and additional clauses.

Ipswich Town had been interested in recruiting Simms, while Swansea City had also enquired - their interest would almost certainly have been dependent on their own striker Joel Piroe.

Sunderland remain in the market for another striking addition this summer, with Hemir set to make his first appearance in a red-and-white shirt at South Shields on Saturday.