Sunderland have spent their pre-season making several changes to their squad ahead of League One next season.
Sunderland midfielder Lee Cattermole is currently the longest-serving member in Jack Ross’s League One side, having joined the Black Cats in 2009.
The 30-year-old has had his ups and downs with the Black Cats, from featuring in the Sunderland side that reached the Capital One Cup final in 2014, to back-to-back relegations from the Premier League and Championship.
However, despite Cattermole having made 204 appearances in the famous red and white colours of Sunderland, the Black Cats must first part ways with their long-serving midfielder before they stand any chance of progressing under the new ownership of Stewart Donald.
Cattermole joined Sunderland from Wigan Athletic for a fee of £6million and has certainly give the Wearsider’s their money’s worth in his time playing for the club.
The former Middlesbrough man has even scored three goals from his defensive midfield position, with one of his best coming against West Bromwich Albion in a 2-2 draw at The Hawthorns back in 2014.
However, as a new era begins at Sunderland, with Donald’s arrival and the appointment of Jack Ross as manager, it has become apparent that the time has perhaps come for Cattermole to depart.
The Black Cats have welcomed a whole host of new faces into their ranks to bolster their squad for next term, with Chris Maguire, Dylan McGeouch and Watford’s Jerome Sinclair all having arrived at the Wearside club.
Not only has Ross’s side made a number of signings, they have also been busy offloading members of their squad who seemingly lacked desire to play for Sunderland in the third tier; something that some fans have suggested of Cattermole too.
Sunderland’s number six is also one of the higher earner’s on their books alongside full-back Bryan Oviedo and, if they were to sell their man, they could then put money into bringing younger prospects from other clubs.
Although Cattermole is no longer one of the fan favourites in Sunderland’s side, he has still featured in all three of their pre-season fixtures and even impressed on occasion in a 6-0 win against Ross’s former side St Mirren.
However, if Sunderland are to move forward as a club in League One next season, it is imperative that they rid themselves of the players who have been a part of their dismal recent history.
And the Black Cats will have to move quick to move the player to another club, with just over a week to go until they kick their new season off at home to Charlton Athletic.
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