Sunderland have enjoyed a solid, albeit unspectacular, return to life in the Championship following their promotion from League One last term.

The Black Cats beat Wycombe 2-0 in the play-off final at the end of the 2021/22 campaign and are currently sitting 13th in the second tier after 19 matches.

Alex Neil started the season in the dugout before heading off to rivals Stoke City and Tony Mowbray replaced him at the helm towards the end of August.

One player whose performances have summed up Sunderland as a club this season is central midfielder Elliot Embleton, as he has been hit-and-miss with his displays in the Championship.

The gem has shown signs of promise in the final third but has not produced enough quality on a consistent basis to make him one of the top performers for Mowbray.

He has scored two goals and provided two assists in 19 appearances - a goal contribution every 4.75 games - in the division, whilst averaging a SofaScore rating of 6.78 - ranking him 15th in the squad.

Sunderland could now land an upgrade on the Black Cats academy product by striking a deal to sign Bradley Dack from Mowbray's former club Blackburn Rovers.

The Sun recently reported that they are eyeing up a deal for the attacking midfielder in the January transfer window and could be afforded the chance to sign him on a free transfer, as his contract is up at the end of the campaign and could be paid off by his current club.

Dack has only started three Championship matches this season as he has struggled to break into Blackburn's side, but did score two goals and provide one assist in two EFL Cup matches earlier in the campaign.

However, the midfielder has been a brilliant performer at this level in the past and shone under Mowbray's management earlier in his career.

Between 2017/18 and 2019/20, the Englishman racked up 42 goals and 17 assists in 106 Championship and League One appearances combined for the current Sunderland boss, which shows that he has the ability to make a huge impact in the final third.

The 28-year-old has scored 28 goals and provided ten assists in 100 outings in the second tier, which works out as a goal contribution every 2.63 matches - significantly better than Embleton's return this season.

Dack, who Mowbray once described as "a kid on the playground" on the pitch, has proven that he can be an excellent player in the division whilst playing for the current Black Cats boss and he could revive his career by reuniting with the former Middlesbrough manager.

Therefore, he could be an upgrade on Embleton by delivering goals and assists more frequently than the 23-year-old, whilst also being someone the Wearside academy product can learn from in training to improve his own performances.