:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/36925224/wb.0.jpg)
Sunderland have completed the signing of Will Buckley from Brighton and Hove Albion for an undisclosed fee, believed to be around £2.5m. The 24-year-old winger has signed a 3-year-deal, becoming the club's seventh signing of the summer.
It brings to an end a lengthy pursuit for Gus Poyet, who for months has been strongly linked with the player he took to The Amex from Watford during his time on the south coast.
Buckley is a name which is unlikely to get many pulses racing, and it's fair to say he has lost his way at Brigton over the last year or so. However, the fact that coincides almost precisely with Poyet's departure should bode well, as it demonstrates that he is a player the Sunderland manager knows how to get the very best from.
Should Buckley be able to recapture his form under Poyet before, he should prove to be a very astute piece of business for Sunderland, offering the kind of pace and directness the side has often lacked in the final third to provide the cutting edge to the neat passing in the midfield.
A signing to be cautiously optimistic about rather than full-on excited, really.
