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According to reports in Italy, Marcos Alonso is set for a move away from Fiorentina with a possible return to Sunderland on the cards. The report claims that the Italian club are already working on a transfer for the player but that the negotiations would not be concluded until the end of the season, with a view to a move in the Summer transfer window. A fee of around £5m has been suggested, with one Italian reporter claiming a deal has already been struck that will see Alonso leave in June to an unnamed club.
Patrick van Aanholt is currently our only senior left back but with the Dutch international only just returning to the side after injury and still to convince defensively, another left back looks to be on the agenda for Gus Poyet and Lee Congerton in the near future. Particularly if the 3-5-2 formation is here to stay, due to the wing backs needing to be proficient going forward. Although Billy Jones, Anthony Reveillere and John O'Shea are able to cover left back, being right footed restricts their effectiveness when overlapping.
So a return to the club for Alonso would not only create genuine competition for places at left back, which would surely see the Spaniard as first choice based on his performances last season, but would also see a very popular player with supporters return to the Stadium of Light.
Alonso isn't the only player from Serie A to be linked with a move to Sunderland, as Juan Sanchez Mino of Torino has also been mentioned as a player who is said to be interesting Poyet.
The left footed midfielder, who can also play central midfield and left back, could be leaving Torino in the near future after news emerged of the player's entourage travelling to Europe to try and push through a move for the 25-year-old.
Sanchez Mino only signed for il Toro in the summer, when he was sold by Boca Juniors in an unsuccessful attempt to purchase then Sunderland striker Nacho Scocco, but has struggled to acclimatise to Italy. Torino have not given up on the player however and are willing to loan him out but would prefer to do so to another Italian side to help the player adapt to Serie A. Which may disappoint both Sunderland and Deportivo La Coruna, who have reportedly enquired about signing the player on loan.
This may well be a case of an agent using Sunderland to drum up interest in the player, as it seems unlikely that a player who has struggled to adapt to Serie A would flourish after a loan move to the Premier League but with Poyet's clear love of his fellow South Americans, it's not one we can entirely rule out.
