Report: Sunderland Agree Fee For Mannone

According to a report by Sky Sports News today, Sunderland have agreed a fee with Arsenal for their goalkeeper Vito Mannone.

With Simon Mignolet's recent departure to Liverpool, Sunderland have been in need of a new goalkeeper, with many goalkeepers being linked, from experienced and unlikely goalkeepers like Julio Cesar and Morgan De Sanctis to more realistic and up and coming goalkeepers in Joeren Zoet and Kristoffer Nordfeldt. However it appears as if our Italian backroom team have decided to make their move for a compatriot, in Mannone.

Currently Arsenal's third choice goalkeeper, Mannone is a 25-year-old Italian who has been at Arsenal since he was 17 but qualifies as a home-grown player. Mannone has rarely had a run in the Arsenal side and his 60 senior appearances have mainly come from loan spells at Hull (twice) and Barnsley, on the rare occasions he has started for Arsenal, he has made some very notable mistakes, particularly in a Champions League game at Olympiakos.

Although not the most inspiring signing, it's likely Keiren Westwood will be given a chance as our number one after waiting patiently behind Mignolet, with Mannone coming in as competition and back-up. This move should also allow the highly rated Jordan Pickford to go out on loan and will ensure that there are no insurmountable obstacles ahead of him in the pecking order, if Sunderland have hopes of him eventually being Sunderland's long-term goalkeeper. Which may have been the case if Zoet or Nordfeldt had signed.