The Sunderland AFC transfer Q&A: Summer plans in focus and what fans can expect

Sunderland's successful Championship campaign has come to a close and attentions are turning to what will be a fascinating summer of recruitment.

Here, we take a look at some of the key questions and assess what may well happen next...

What do we know about Sunderland's transfer plans - and the budget - for this summer?

Broadly speaking Sunderland's strategy will stay the same as in recent windows, investing in young players as they look to grow their squad over time.

Tony Mowbray alluded to this shortly before the play-off campaign, when he discussed the planning for this summer that was already very much under way behind the scenes.

He said: "We have got a lot of talented, young players from around the world that we think could help this young team in the Championship keep developing and keep growing."

Jobe Bellingham looks to be the first who will sign this summer, having watched the club's win over Luton Town at the Stadium of Light in person earlier this month. A deal with Birmingham City is thought to be advanced.

Supporters can expect an increased budget and fees to be spent this summer, but the general trajectory is expected to remain the same.

Are any of the club's key assets likely to be sold this summer?

There may well be interest but Sunderland's starting position is pretty strong.

Dan Neil, Anthony Patterson and Jack Clarke have all been watched by Premier League clubs but all are in the early stages of long-term contracts agreed in the last 12 months. Part of the long-term strategy of the club is to reinvest money raised by player sales but the club are also ambitious and at this stage they are still in the process of building the squad.

Of course a huge bid could change the picture, but numerous sales aren't expected or planned for at this point.

The biggest uncertainty would have to be over Ross Stewart, who is now entering the final year of his deal. As it stands there have not been any indications that the two parties are any closer to bridging the gap that has existed in the year or so since talks began, and so

Sunderland's negotiating hand should interest materialise is not particularly strong. The question is when Stewart will be fully fit, and what that might mean for the teams who have been tracking his outstanding form.

There will be outgoings this summer, with Joe Anderson potentially going out on loan as Sunderland look to get him ready for a long-term role in the side. And after spending the second half of the season out on loan, Bailey Wright and Leon Dajaku could both potentially leave.

Jay Matete will get a chance to impress in pre-season after his loan at Plymouth Argyle.

How likely are Sunderland to go back into the loan market this summer?

They won't rely on the loan market but it would be a surprise if it was not used to some extent.

Ideally, Sunderland want to prioritise permanent signings who can grow their value alongside the club - and we've seen that in the way so many of their additions in recent windows have been players at Premier League academies heading towards the end of their contracts.

When they do make a loan addition, the preference is to try and strike deals where there is a realistic prospect of signing the player in the long term.

The reality, though, is that the top sides in the Championship utilise the loan market and particularly the youngsters on the fringes of their Premier League clubs to add the individual quality that can settle tight games in a ferociously competitive division. Sunderland can't be any different if they have promotion aspirations and they have two big factors in their favour: they now have a proven record of giving young players minutes and the 40,000 crowds at the Stadium of Light offers a unique chance for Premier League clubs to replicate the pressure of a top-tier environment.

It's an advantage you can't afford to spurn, even if it ultimately only forms a small part of your strategy.

Could any of this season's loanees return this summer?

Sunderland have confirmed that Edouard Michut won't be returning, and you can read more on why that decision was made here. Sadly, the only realistic avenue to Amad returning was to win promotion.

Would Sunderland be interested in bringing back Ellis Simms or Joe Gelhardt back to the club? Almost certainly. Gelhardt was unfortunate that Stewart's injury stopped him from playing the role he was initially brought in for, but his work-rate and link-up play impressed. Simms' goalscoring record spoke for itself.

Ultimately the fate of both will likely depend on how their clubs fare on the final day of the Premier League season. Should either (or both) be relegated, then you would strongly expect both players to come into their respective squads for a Championship campaign next season. Both will almost certainly spend pre-season with their current clubs, and so Sunderland will have to pursue other targets in the interim.

What do you make of the persistent reports that Tony Mowbray's future is in question?

It has been a bizarre subplot to what was an otherwise thrilling end to the season.

The facts of what we know right now are this: After the win at West Brom, Sunderland were linked with a move for Italian coach Francesco Farioli this summer. The club did not comment, though it's well known that they track potential future acquisitions regularly and Mowbray alluded to this himself later that week. The head coach did then have a conversation with Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman, where the claims were 'heavily played down'.

A three-man shortlist was then reported to have been drawn up on the eve of the play-off campaign, though this story was in private strongly denied by club sources. The claim was then repeated in the aftermath of the defeat to Luton Town.

The night before, Mowbray had cast doubts over his own future by saying that he did not know what the future held. Clearly, the reassurances (or lack of) that he had been given in the days and weeks previous behind the scenes had left him wondering if there was substance to the now persistent rumours.

The feeling at Sunderland has been that Mowbray will continue until next season. He has performed excellently in his first nine months in charge, he is under contract for another season and in the days after that Luton defeat he was involved as the club stepped up their preparations for next season.

So as it stands, Mowbray is in charge moving forward and there is no suggestion otherwise. Speakman praised the head coach's work in his post-season review, which appears to underline that expectation even if he did not address the recent reports directly.