Rhodes, Kone and Keane the alternatives as Sunderland look elsewhere
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Sunderland have had a third bid rejected from Leicester for Leonardo Ulloa, and now it’s probably about time the Black Cats look elsewhere.
We now know that David Moyes has at least £7.5m at his disposal, with the Wearsiders willing to pay that much for Ulloa today.
So, with the Foxes refusing to play ball, who can Sunderland turn to to boost their relegation hopes?
Well, Middlesbrough’s Jordan Rhodes is set to twiddle his thumbs for the rest of the season unless he can secure a move out of the Riverside.
It would only be a 30 mile move for the Scotland international, although it remains to be seen whether Boro would sell to a local, and relegation rival.
But Rhodes would surely get plenty of game-time under Moyes, and his physical attributes could balance nicely with fox in the box Jermain Defoe.
The former Blackburn Rovers ace is 8/1 to join Sunderland today.
If Moyes is to continue his recent trend of snapping up Everton players, then step forward Aroune Kone.
The 33-year-old has been told by Toffees boss Ronald Koeman that he can leave, and we wouldn’t be at all surprised to see a deal agreed by 23:00 tonight.
He won’t break any goalscoring records, but Kone will bring a welcome combination of pace and power.
We also reckon Robbie Keane could do a job for Sunderland too.
The former LA Galaxy star is just 3/1 to sign for an English club today, and knows Defoe well from their days together at Tottenham. The Republic of Ireland legend’s intelligence and movement could also be a perfect foil to Sunderland’s top scorer.
Finally, with Scott Hogan set to arrive at Aston Villa from Brentford today, Ross McCormack’s time at Villa Park looks over.
Time is running out to make a move, but each of these four are available, it’s all a question of can Sunderland pitch the right offer in the next few hours?
Click here for a full list of transfer odds.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing
