Promising full-back Benjamin Mendy is due on Wearside later this week to tie up a move to Sunderland.
The 18-year-old Le Havre defender is expected to head for England to
complete his switch with the two clubs having agreed a deal some time
ago.
Left-back Mendy has also been linked with Arsenal, Lyon and Marseille
this summer, but the player has indicated that the Stadium of Light
will be his destination and Press Association Sport understands the
transfer could be completed within days.
That would represent a major boost for manager Paolo Di Canio and his
recruitment team, headed by new director of football Roberto De Fanti.
The Black Cats confirmed three new signings yesterday as defenders
Valentin Roberge and Modibo Diakite and midfielder Cabral officially
became Sunderland players after running down their contracts at
Maritimo, Lazio and Basle respectively.
But work is continuing apace to further re-shape not only the first team, but the development squad too.
Di Canio is hot on the trail of Velez Sarsfield's 21-year-old
right-back Gino Peruzzi, while Le Havre midfielder El-Hadji Ba, 20, is
expected to complete a Bosman free transfer sooner rather than later.
The Black Cats are also close to adding Arsenal goalkeeper Vito
Manonne to the ranks after agreeing a fee with the Gunners over the
weekend.
Italian Mannone, 25, made 13 appearances for Arsene Wenger's men last
season, four of them in the Champions League, although his last game
came in November after number one Wojciech Szczesny had returned from an
ankle injury.
He spent the remainder of the season on the bench with Lukasz
Fabianski getting the nod when Szczesny succumbed to injury once again
in March.
A move to Sunderland may give him a better chance of competing for a
first-team place, although he would arrive with Keiren Westwood
seemingly the man in possession following Simon Mignolet's departure for
Liverpool.
The Reds paid an initial £9million for the Belgium international,
representing a significant profit on the £2mil the Black Cats had handed
over for him three years earlier.
Mannone's price-tag is understood to amount to a fraction of the proceeds of Mignolet's sale.
Di Canio and his players are due to return for pre-season training
tomorrow with the rebuilding work only partially complete and further
arrivals and departures in the offing.
The Italian is desperate to recruit at least one striker, and AZ
Alkmaar's United States international Jozy Altidore has been heavily
linked with the club.
But there could be further departures too amid speculation that
full-back Phil Bardsley, skipper Lee Cattermole and playmaker Stephane
Sessegnon may leave.
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