Stewart Donald has told Tommy Smith that the free-agent centre-back could be brought back to Sunderland during the summer transfer window, as reported by the New Zealand Herald.
There is unlikely to be a raft of (relatively) big-money signings in League One this summer, with funds tight all over the third tier.
So players like Smith, experienced, proven performers who are out of contract and looking for work, are set to be in high demand.
The New Zealand international finds himself on the breadline after his short-term contract at Sunderland came to an end. But that does not mean that a commanding centre-half will not be at Wearside when 2020/21 kicks off.
Donald, the Black Cats’s affable owner, has made it clear to Smith that Sunderland would be interested in offering him another contract once things settle down a little.
“Clubs in League One don’t know when games are going ahead again so the chairman said he wasn’t going to exercise any extension which is fair enough, so I knew that was coming,” says Smith, who is not short of offers.
“But (Donald) also said I might be looked at again in the future once things are a bit clearer moving forward.
“I’ve had a little bit of interest both in the UK and abroad but I think clubs are holding fire on making those decisions until they know what’s going to be happening. So I’m in limbo a bit at the moment.”
The former Ipswich and Brentford defender failed to make a single appearance during his short spell on Wearside recently. It’s fair to say, then, that Smith has unfinished business at the Stadium of Light.
His vast, Football League experience should stand Smith in good stead if Sunderland do show an interest in offering him fresh terms later this summer.
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