Inside the two huge announcements that saw Sunderland's summer transfer business take big step forward

They are two of the most significant deals Sunderland will do this summer and they were announced in a little over 24 hours, a weekend that underlined the sense that this is a club making encouraging progress ahead of the start of pre-season next week.

It had perhaps gone a little under that radar that Dennis Cirkin was heading into the final year of his initial three-year contract, with Ross Stewart understandably dominating much of the agenda and debate as a result of his goalscoring exploits.

Cirkin, though, is equally as central to what Sunderland are hoping to achieve in the long run. His profile makes him a player of immense value to the club, both on the pitch in the short term and off the pitch in the longer run. First and foremost, the 21-year-old offers a huge amount to Tony Mowbray's defence for the season ahead. He is versatile, comfortable slotting in on the left of a back three or in a more orthodox full-back position. He is brave, makes challenges, and is more than comfortable stepping out and carrying the ball over long distances. Five goals from 28 appearances last season also represented a more than useful return, to put it mildly. A head coach's dream: High quality, low maintenance, a player with a very down-to-earth temperament and a desire to improve.

His injury record over the last year or so has brought frustration for both himself and his club but much of that has been unavoidable and in the case of his concussion at Millwall, a direct result of his desire to contribute.

Securing his long-term future early in the summer allows him to focus entirely on a full and productive pre-season, it gives Mowbray some certainty in a key part of the pitch and for the club, it protects the value of a long-term asset.

It is well known that Spurs have had the option to buy back Cirkin since his departure two summers ago but at this stage, that doesn't feel a particularly key part of this story. For one, Cirkin would have to agree to that. Secondly, Spurs have shown no signs of attempting to do so in the previous two windows and for three, the fee would be at a level where Sunderland could reinvest significantly into their squad.

One of the reasons this is an important piece of business from Sunderland is that all the attributes that make him so valuable for the season ahead, make him a player of obvious interest to other clubs in the longer term. The number of young, left-sided defenders playing regularly outside the Premier League is pretty small, which is exactly why Sunderland were so keen to sign Joe Anderson from Everton in January - to have another player in the long run who could potentially do exactly that.

If Cirkin's trajectory continues it will draw serious interest, and that suits Sunderland fine. So it goes without saying that had the youngster run down his contract, the suitors would have been multiple and significant. It is a coup for Sunderland that the youngster was so keen to continue.

A long-term problem finally addressed (at least in part)

Of equal significance was that a day later, Hemir arrived from Benfica B on a five-year deal, becoming the first striker to arrive in a permanent deal since Ross Stewart. Though the deal was initially reported as a free transfer in the Portugese media, that is understood not to be the case and it is in fact another seven-figure fee that the club have committed to this summer.

If there has been one understandable criticism of Sunderland's otherwise hugely successful transfer policy, it has been that they have persistently been left short up front. There has been some element of bad luck in this: A deal for Nathan Broadhead was all but done last summer before the Welshman had a last minute change of heart, while Ellis Simms was surprisingly recalled by Everton last January. Yet the point, fairly made, has also been that Sunderland's lack of reserves in that department have left them acutely vulnerable to injury or recalls - always a possibility when loans are involved.

Sunderland's hierarchy have always countered that it isn't easy to retain a large number of proven strikers, all of whom command significant salaries and expect to start week in, week out. The frustration for the hierarchy has been that Sunderland have not been able to count on young players pushing up into the senior squad, primarily because the sales of academy talents such as Joe Hugill and Sam Greenwood had left a significant gap before Kyril Louis-Dreyfus' takeover.

They had looked to bridge that gap with the signing of Andras Nemeth from Genk in January, and there was some hope a deal could be done before the striker eventually opted to move to HSV Hamburg. In the addition of Hemir, who did have significant interest from elsewhere, Sunderland have finally started to make progress on life both with Ross Stewart next season, and beyond him whenever that time comes.

In his first interview with club media, Hemir told supporters that he is good with the ball, has a powerful shot and is hoping to bring goals to the club. His physical stature is also instantly obvious, and it does not appear to be any coincidence that Sunderland's summer business so far is adding significant height to Mowbray's ranks.

How players settle and adapt to a new division is always an unknown and there are no guarantees with any player, but after last season's frustration it is encouraging that pre-season will begin with a player in the squad who can either play alongside Stewart or  step in when required.

Which is, of course, not to say that Sunderland are or should be done in such a critically important part of the pitch. There remains obvious uncertainty over Stewart, both in how quickly he can fully recover from that serious ankle injury sustained at Fulham in January, and as to whether he will stay to see out the final year of his current contract.

Cirkin's renewal is another tick for a structure that has generally been hugely successful at proactively managing contracts in the squad, but Stewart's situation remains unresolved and that reflects the distance that there has been between the parties for much of the process.

For both the short and the long term, there is a strong argument that Hemir shouldn't be the last forward through the door before the end of August.

That in itself is a reminder that Sunderland have much work still to do this summer, but another two pieces of the overall puzzle have fallen into place in quick succession.