PASALIC LINKED

The latest name to be linked to Sunderland, according to SportsBoom, is Atalanta midfielder Mario Pasalic.

The Croatia international has spent seven years at the Serie A club but his contract is set to expire on June 30th and he is yet to sign a new deal. It is said that he is looking for a new challenge and would be open to a return to England.

Pasalic, now 30, was previously employed by Chelsea but despite spending six years at the club never made a single Premier League appearance. Instead, he was farmed out on loan (the Chelsea way) to Elche, Monaco, AC Milan and Spartak Moscow. He then spent two years on loan at Atalanta before finally joining the Italian side permanently in 2020.

The former Europa League winner has played 298 times for Atlanta across seven seasons in total and weighed in with 59 goals. On the international stage, he's collected 76 Croatia caps and scored 11 times.

Promoted sides Sunderland and Leeds have both been credited with an interest in Pasalic. With Jobe Bellingham already having joined Dortmund, it is clear that Sunderland could do with midfield reinforcements to complement the arrival of Enzo Le Fee, who became our record signing early in the window. It would be an impressive piece of business if the Black Cats could capture someone of Pasalic's calibre on a free transfer.