It does, however, remain to be seen how active the Black Cats will be in the market following their steady start to the season with Tony Mowbray’s men currently sitting in sixth place in the Championship.
The January transfer market, though, can be notoriously hard to do business in with clubs reluctant to sell their best players unless inflated prices are agreed upon.
With that in mind, we take a look at some of the best January transfer deals that Sunderland have been able to pull off in recent seasons:
13. Shay Given
Before he became a Newcastle United legend, Shay Given joined Sunderland on loan in 1996 and enjoyed a stellar second half to the campaign. Photo: Ian MacNicol
14. Andy Reid
On the last day of the 2008 January transfer window, Andy Reid joined Sunderland in a three-and-a-half-year deal worth £5million. Photo: Clive Brunskill
15. Mart Poom
Mart Poom's initial loan move to Sunderland move was made permanent in January 2003 for a fee of around £3.19million. Photo: Laurence Griffiths