Sunderland reportedly eyeing ambitious £25m transfer move for ‘top-class’ Premier League defender

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Sunderland’s recruitment team has reportedly identified a defender with Champions League experience as a target in the summer transfer window.

Black Cats owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus has set the transfer budget for Sunderland’s Premier League return, and a host of high-profile names continue to be linked.

Since the club achieved play-off final victory, Sunderland have been linked with a £20m move for Wilfried Singo, and could have the upper hand in signing the Monaco defender through club figure Juan Sartori.

Liverpool legend Jordan Henderson has been touted for a return to his boyhood club, seeing Sunderland fans all agree his signing is a “no-brainer”.

Now, one of Henderson’s former teammates from his Reds days has been touted as the latest high-profile name to be linked with a Black Cats transfer.

• READ MORE: Four targets Sunderland could sign as club ‘prioritising’ two key positions in summer transfer window

Sunderland among clubs ‘keeping close tabs’ on Liverpool ace Joe Gomez

The Black Cats’ promotion has placed further pressure on the recruitment team to equip head coach Regis Le Bris with quality reinforcements in the summer window.

Sunderland require central defensive recruits, and Manchester City starlet Callum Doyle could be the next signing, after impressing during his loan spell at Norwich this season.

The latest high-profile name to be linked with Sunderland is Reds defender Joe Gomez, according to transfer journalist Ekrem Konur.

Via Empire of the Kop, he claims that “Liverpool are open to letting the 28-year-old depart this summer and wouldn’t stand in his way if his wish were to leave, with FSG setting a price tag of €30m (£25.3m) for him.

“No fewer than eight Premier League clubs are keeping close tabs on Gomez, with Newcastle, Aston Villa, Everton, West Ham, Bournemouth and the promoted trio of Leeds, Burnley and Sunderland all informed as to his situation.”

A player of Gomez’s calibre, having played a major part in the Reds’ success over recent seasons, would be an impressive coup for Sunderland if they can beat the clubs reportedly also interested in his services.

Last year, Klopp told a Liverpool press conference, on Gomez: “Without Joe (Gomez) nothing would’ve happened in the last pretty much 13 [or] 14 weeks since Robbo (Andy Robertson) is out.

“He played exceptional today again. He’s a real defender and he comes inside, he’s doing that really well.

“He is a lifesaver, to be honest, that he was here, that he could play.

“People forget how important Joey was in the best years we had. I don’t know how many games he played in the year when we became champions, and how many games he played in the year when we won the Champions League – a lot, and rightly so because he’s a top-class player.”

With Premier League survival the task at hand for Le Bris, his summer to-do list is bursting at the seams, and Gomez’s acquisition would tick off an imperative task impressively.

• READ MORE: England boss Thomas Tuchel has already told Sunderland exactly why they should re-sign Jordan Henderson

Why Joe Gomez would be the perfect signing for Sunderland

Gomez’s achievements at Liverpool highlight his importance to the era in which Klopp’s side enjoyed vast domestic and European success.

The 25-year-old would bring to Wearside a Champions League winner’s medal, two Premier League winners’ medals, and a host of other domestic final victories.

As evidenced by the Black Cats’ play-off final win, the source of Sunderland’s success is obvious, with four of their academy graduates playing a pivotal role in the Wembley victory over the Blades.

Sunderland have become revered in the EFL for their youth-first footballing philosophy, but if they have any hopes of dodging an instant relegation to the Championship, then top flight-experienced, quality acquisitions must be made.

241-time Liverpool player Gomez, who has two years left to run on his current Reds deal, theoretically would fit the bill if the initial reports materialise into a formal offer within the summer transfer window.