Transfers, injuries and ambitions: Everything Sunderland boss Mel Reay said on the eve of the new season

Sunderland begin their Championship campaign at home to London City Lionesses on Sunday afternoon (1pm KO) at Eppleton.

Mel Reay spoke to the press on Thursday to discuss a busy summer and give a squad update ahead of the new season.

Here's everything that was said...

How do you feel you're looking for this season?

I think it was a frustrating season towards the tail end but we draw a line under it and we've got another year of Championship experience under our belt so we're very much looking forward to going into the new season.

We've had a really good pre season with some good new players that we've integrated into the squad and we certainly want to do better than we did last season.

It's been a busy summer, with short holidays and long hours in the Academy getting the squad together.

Hopefully that hard work will be justified and you'll see that on a Sunday.

What can you tell us about those new signings?

We've brought in six new players and we're really pleased with how they've integrated over the course of the pre season.

Some have been with us longer than others, so some are still playing a little bit of catch up. They're really good people and we hope that they're going to add some real value to the team.

We've got a new central defender, Amy Goddard, who is a real giant in women's football at 6ft. We hope she'll give us good presence in both boxes.

We've got a brand new central midfield with three new players, and an exciting senior Welsh international in Mary McAteer out on the flank. We're excited to see how they progress and hopefully they can contribute to many wins this season.

We've seen the impact of the Lionesses this summer - are you hoping Sunderland will benefit?

I just hope it inspires the North East to come out and watch women's football.

That's the legacy that the Lionesses want to have and historically, our team here plays better in front of a packed crowd. So the more people we can get into Eppleton, the better.

With competition in the region increasing, is there extra pressure on Sunderland?

I don't think it's extra pressure, I think it's really good for the region.

For us, moving onto a hybrid model and being able to offer full-time football is a huge step forward for us a club. With our new academy underneath, we've got a really sustainable model. We've now got players all the way from the U8s to senior football and with a full-time contract at the end of that journey, so it's an exciting time to be a Sunderland footballer. We hope to generate some future Lionesses along the way.

The model that we've got suits us. We've got a good blend of full time footballers with players that we didn't want to lose. Some players have got huge careers outside the game. For example, Meg Beer is a firefighter coming towards the end of her [football career] but she's been a really good servant for the club and we feel these players are really important, with real value to add to the squad.

So we feel having that blend works for us.

What are you expecting from London City Lionesses this weekend and from the Championship more generally this season?

They had a fantastic season last time out, and pushed Bristol City all the way. There's been a few players who have departed and the management has changed too, so we're not quite sure what to expect. So for us it's about concentrating on ourselves and making sure we're in the best place possible to try and take points from the game.

We've got four games until an international break so I think when we hit that, you'll really be able to see who is likely to be up there.

I think on any given day, anyone can beat anyone and that's what we've seen in the last couple of years. It's going to be very competitive.

What did you take from a challenging season last time out, when you were often very close to getting something from games?

I think you've got show resilience and it's certainly evident that when you get your chances, you've got to take them.

Like you say, I think there was a time in March where we looked back and those games we lost by one goal, if we'd scored and it'd gone the other way we could have been as high as second.

So it's very fine margins and it's most certainly about putting the ball in the back of the net. Hopefully the new players we've brought in will give us that added value.

And you've got players coming back from injury, which will help?

Yeah, Keira Ramshaw has had another little setback so she is going to see the specialist on Saturday morning. At this stage she's touch and go as to whether she'll be involved on Sunday.

We'll have to wait and see. Faye Mullen is returning from an ACL, hopefully towards the end of the September, and that will again just add extra depth to the squad.

Everyone else is fit to go.

What's your message to people considering coming down to Eppleton on Sunday and in future weeks?

My hope is that you're going to see a better product. With most of the players being full time, it's all they've got to focus on and that is a big change in terms of mindset.

It was difficult last year when you've got part-time footballers. Full-time footballers at our disposal will hopefully stand us in good stead, and hopefully there'll be a few more additions to come before the window shuts as well.

How close do you think you are to making those additions - and how do you feel about the depth of the squad at the moment?

I think we're a bit closer than when I spoke about it last week.

It's still with legal teams in terms of getting things drawn up, but we're hopeful it's going to come off for us.

We're carrying 20 players at the minute so it's a big squad but with Keira and Faye touch and go as I mentioned before, you'd still want a little more depth just to cover your back in case anything else happens along the way.