Sunderland are interested in a deal to bring Tom Ince to the Stadium of Light this summer.

What's the talk?

That's according to a report by Football League World, who claimed that Sunderland and Ipswich Town are two clubs interested in a deal for the Stoke City winger, although neither are believed to have made a concrete offer for the 29-year-old at present.

The report added that a number of other clubs are also keeping a close eye on the situation of the former England under-21 international, although the Black Cats and the Tractor Boys are thought to be leading the race for his signature.

Finally, it is claimed that the forward does not appear to be part of Michael O'Neill's first team plans at the bet365 Stadium, despite having featured for the club in pre-season.

Imagine him and Pritchard

Ince did not enjoy the best of seasons in 2020/21, starting just five Championship games for Stoke and on loan at Luton Town, but should the winger go on to seal a move to Sunderland this summer, it is clear that he possesses the ability to make a real impact in the third tier.

Indeed, as recently as the 2018/19 season, Ince played a starring role for Stoke after joining from Huddersfield Town in a £10m move, with the £1.35m-rated man scoring six goals, providing seven assists and creating seven big chances over his 38 Championship appearances, taking 2.7 shots and making 1.2 key passes per game.

These returns saw the man who Nathan Jones dubbed a "massive" player earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.04, ranking him as the club's best performer in the league that year.

It is evident that the £27k-per-week Ince is indeed a very talented player; he has just found form and game-time hard to come by in recent seasons - something which could also be said about another of Sunderland's summer signings in Alex Pritchard.

Indeed, prior to his disappointing spell with Huddersfield, the 28-year-old impressed during his time at Norwich City, scoring eight goals and registering 12 assists over his 43 Championship appearances for the club.

As such, if Kyril Louis-Dreyfus does go on to secure Ince's signing this summer, and Johnson manages to get both the 29-year-old and Pritchard firing once again, Sunderland fans could well be set to enjoy a festival of attacking football at the Stadium of Light next season. We believe that the Black Cats chairman should do all he can to land the Stoke winger ahead of the upcoming League One campaign.

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