Sunderland 'target' joins Preston in £1m swoop as Lincoln City bag defender Black Cats were 'interested' in

But Sunderland were still able to conclude some late business.

Jack Diamond headed out on loan to former club Harrogate Town in League Two as Will Grigg departed to join Rotherham United.

Both deals will see the pair stay at their respective clubs until the end of the season with Grigg having likely played his last game for Sunderland with his contract up in the summer.

And the Black Cats were able to get two deals over the line with Leon Dajaku and Thorbert Hoffman joining on season-long loans with options to make the deals permanent at the end of the season.

Here, though, we take you through some of the more interesting Sunderland related stories that you may have missed amidst the madness of deadline day last night:

Ali McCann signs for Preston North End

Preston North End's have signed St Johnstone midfielder Ali McCann.

The midfielder had been linked with a move to Sunderland during the window but it did not materialise.

McCann signed a four-year deal with the Championship club.

The 21-year-old Northern Ireland international is extremely highly-rated and had attracted strong interest from both Celtic and Rangers alongside Sunderland.

Sky Sports reported that the fee to bring McCann to Deepdale is in the region of £1million.

Jamie Robson signs for Lincoln City

Lincoln City have completed the signing of Dundee United defender Jamie Robson.

The full-back was reportedly another target of Sunderland’s.

However, the 23-year-old signed for Michael Appleton’s side a direct replacement for Tayo Edun, who has left the Imps for Blackburn Rovers for a fee of around £500,000.

Robson signed on the dotted line at Sincil Bank for an undisclosed fee on a long-term contract, the club announced on Tuesday.

“I’m absolutely buzzing to be here, and I cannot wait to get started,” said Robson.

“The club has had fantastic success over the last few years, and I want to be a part of that and help move this club forward.

“I’ve heard so much about the fans and that’s a massive reason why I’ve joined the club. I’m really looking forward to the first home game and hope to build a good relationship with those supporters.”

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