Sunderland are still on the search for a new midfielder and have multiple players on their radar, including Shrewsbury’s Ollie Norburn, according to The Chronicle.
What’s the word?
The Black Cats have added two players so far this month and the only position they haven’t yet strengthened is the midfield, but that could soon change as they have reportedly submitted an enquiry for Norburn’s services.
So far there have been ”no detailed discussions’ taking place between the two parties, with the 27-year-old on a list of targets that also includes Cardiff’s Will Vaulks and Rangers’ Greg Docherty, per The Chronicle.
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Complete midfielder
From the type of players Phil Parkinson is targeting it is clear that he is looking for a more attack-minded midfielder who is more accomplished in terms of scoring and assisting goals.
Current first-choice centre-midfielders George Dobson and Max Power have scored three goals between them this year, so that is no surprise, and Norburn could provide the solution the Black Cats’ boss needs.
He has three goals to boast of this term to add to the 16 goal contributions he made for the Shrews last season, and adding that to the north-east outfit would be a big benefit as they have mostly relied on the front-three over the past few games.
Lynden Gooch and Chris Maguire have four and six goal contributions respectively in the previous five matches, which highlights that issue, but it is one which could also be helped by Docherty and Vaulks, who both scored eight or more last season.
Norburn doesn’t just excel in front of goal, however, and his average of 2.6 tackles and 1.4 interceptions per game in 2019/20 show how much of an all-round midfielder he really is.
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The only worry about this new Sunderland target is that it means a move for Docherty could be in doubt. Keith Downie alluded to as much a few days ago and with Charlton now registering an interest in the 23-year-old he could be set for a Championship switch.
Missing out on a player who scored 10 and assisted 11 goals in League One last year would be a blow for Parkinson, and means he may instead have to settle for a player who isn’t his first-choice.
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