Inside Sunderland's January transfer window and what it means for their promotion hopes

In the end the story of Sunderland’s January transfer window was of a club doubling down on its strategy: on its refusal to pay over the odds and on its absolute faith in youth.

As such, how you feel about how the window played out likely depends on how you feel about the strategy itself. If you were of the view that Sunderland came into this window needing a few more ‘grey hairs’ in the side, then you would have been left disappointed. Sunderland lost one of their most experienced and consistent campaigners in Alex Pritchard, and brought in three young players with varying levels of senior experience. If you revel in Sunderland’s commitment to snapping up some of the game’s exciting young talent, then the arrival of highly-rated Romaine Mundle was an unexpected treat in another progressive month.

Against the parameters set out at the start of the window, Sunderland landed some of what they needed but most certainly not all of it. First and foremost, and this should not be underestimated in the final analysis, they were able to hold on to the core of the side that has brought them firmly into contention for another play-off push.

Though it proved to be a window in which Premier League clubs tightened their belts amid Financial Fair Play concerns, it was never a sure thing that Jack Clarke would stay through to the summer and that he does so is a major boost. All parties had expected the summer window to be a more likely point for his departure if Sunderland win promotion, but there was always the chance a top-tier club would test that resolve before the month was out. In the end that proved to be Serie A side Lazio, who came to the table with two significant bids in the final week of the window. There were deals on the table that could have banked Sunderland in the region of £15 million, but the Black Cats held firm and forced Lazio to look elsewhere. Their search for a winger proved to be one of the bizarre subplots of the EFL window, with Plymouth Argyle’s Morgan Whittaker and Norwich City’s Jonathan Rowe also on their radar. 

That there were no significant outgoings should allow for Sunderland to sustain their form through the first 29 games of the campaign, though Pritchard’s absence leaves a gap that won’t be easily filled in the short term. The Black Cats have plenty of options in his position but so far, no one other than perhaps Jobe Bellingham has been able to match his level of consistency. 

The key question at the end of any transfer window is whether a team has come out stronger than they went in and at this stage, it’s difficult to say that this is definitively true of Sunderland’s window. 

The goal for the Black Cats was to add a central midfielder and a striker, though Michael Beale made clear that with squad depth largely sufficient, it would have to be players who could immediately compete for a place in the starting XI. They were able to recruit in midfield, with Callum Styles arriving on loan from Barnsley with an option to buy in the summer. Capable of playing on the left side of defence, he brings some added versatility to the squad and is a proven EFL operator. The deal was held up by Styles requiring surgery on his appendix, but he is thought to now be ready to return and so should quickly be integrated into the squad. He is not the established holding midfielder that many fans had craved and have done since Corry Evans suffered an ACL injury last January, but Speakman hinted last week that he felt the team was evolving in a different direction. That is a debate that will continue to run for the rest of the campaign but Styles has operated in a more withdrawn role at international level and so should add something a little different for the remaining games.

Up front, the wait for a more experienced striker goes on. Sunderland were far from alone in their frustration on that front, with a large number of Championship teams fighting for a very small pool of players and as a result, coming up short when trying to meet some significant financial demands. In the end it was Ipswich Town who landed Kieffer Moore, a hugely expensive loan deal but one that will undoubtedly bolster their promotion prospects. That Sunderland opted not to take a significant financial risk was no great surprise, with Speakman insisting last week that there would be no change in strategy and no deals that would potentially hamper the club’s ability to do business in future windows. What it does mean is that there is a significant pressure on Mason Burstow and Nazariy Rusyn to build on the encouraging signs of recent weeks, and to do so very quickly. 

Sunderland continued to tread their own path in this window, investing carefully and gradually while others such as Ipswich and Hull City again pushed hard for established talent - with the latter in particular landing some eye-catching deals. High risk, high reward deals. Sunderland would argue that their strategy has so far yielded excellent results on the field, while keeping the club in a strong position to invest and push forward in the future.

The arrival of Leo Hjelde was a strong solution to an unexpected issue, with both Dennis Cirkin and Aji Alese suffering injuries of sufficient severity to force Sunderland into the market. Hjelde’s versatility and experience mean that he offers a Championship-ready option now, but a player who can compete in the long run even after Alese and Cirkin return. 

Mundle was perhaps the archetypical signing of Sunderland’s new recruitment approach, a highly-rated talent who they can give time and space to grow and develop. With the long-term uncertainty surrounding Clarke, getting another winger of rich promise in the building was a sound move.

So Sunderland end the window where they started, with a squad packed full of exciting young talent and a side more than capable of punching above its weight in the months ahead. Is it a side and a squad now considerably better placed to go on and win promotion? At this stage that appears doubtful, and most likely and understandably the measure by which supporters will judge it.