ROKER ROUNDUP: Sunderland set to appoint a new coach, whilst interest in Didier Ndong increases

New coach set to arrive

Jack Ross will be ‘officially’ unveiled as the new Sunderland manager later today and he’ll be aided by his assistant at St Mirren, James Fowler - but they may not be the only new additions to the Sunderland backroom staff, with Dunfermline coach John Potter set to join them at the Stadium of Light.

According to the Daily Record, Potter is wanted by Ross as he assembles the team that he hopes will shoot Sunderland straight back into the Championship, and although he signed a new contract just yesterday the deal included a small release clause to smooth his exit to Sunderland.

Potter is currently an assistant to former Sunderland winger Allan Johnston at Dunfermline, where he also had a short spell in charge as manager back in 2015.

More suitors for Ndong

As we reported earlier in the week, Didier Ndong has a small number of suitors chasing his tail as he looks to leave Wearside on a permanent basis this summer. He had been linked with Cardiff City and Lyon. but according to Foot Mercato there are also clubs in Italy who are interested in the Gabon international.

They are not the only clubs tracking Ndong however, with fotomac claiming the midfielder has been offered to Galatasaray.

Ndong is set to return to Sunderland after an unsuccessful loan spell at Watford but with a handful of clubs tracking the 23-year-old, it may not be long before he departs the club permanently.

Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images

McNair stars on international duty

Paddy McNair has had a busy 24 hours. First he was the subject of a £2m bid from Premier League side Brighton and Hove Albion, which Sunderland promptly rejected, then he put in a man of the match display during Northern Ireland’s 0-0 draw with Panama in Panama City.

The midfielder played the full game and afterwards Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill praised the 23-year-old’s display;

The older boys were great. Paddy McNair was immense.

O’Neill went on to discuss McNair’s future, explained how the player is a Premier League player and is determined to get back into the top flight;

Paddy was class tonight. Paddy McNair is a Premier League player.

The reason he isn’t is because of his injury. He joined Sunderland when they were in the Premier League. He then had a bad injury and Sunderland were relegated.

But you’ve seen the quality in the last five or six games of the season. He scored four or five goals at the end of last season.

I hope his club situation sorts itself out. I know what he is capable of. His running power and quality is evident to see, and he is so determined to get back to the Premier League and hopefully he gets that chance.

As our own Connor Bromley explained yesterday, if we want to get back into the Championship at the first time of asking, Stewart Donald may have to take a risk and give the player the opportunity of returning to the Premier League as a Sunderland player.

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