Josh Scowen is likely to stay at Sunderland for another year with the Chronicle reporting that an exit clause in the midfielder’s contract has expired.
Plenty of Black Cats fans might have wondered whether the 27-year-old’s time on Wearside was coming to an end already.
Scowen only joined Sunderland in January from Queens Park Rangers but struggled for game time before the 2019/20 season was brought to a premature conclusion, starting just one of ten games under Phil Parkinson.
And, according to The Chronicle, there was a clause in Scowen’s contract which would allow him to leave the Stadium of Light if Sunderland missed out on promotion and a Championship club expressed an interest.
With the North East giants denied a place in the top six, finishing eighth on a points-per-game basis, Sunderland will be playing League One football again next season.
Promotion, then, feels like a distant dream for now.
But it seems that Scowen will be sticking around after all. The report explains that the exit clause has expired.
And considering that Jon McLaughlin, Duncan Watmore, Joel Lynch, Tom Flanagan, Alim Ozturk, Bailey Wright and more look set to depart in July, with Kyle Lafferty already gone, the importance of retaining Scowen should not be underestimated.
A hard-working and versatile midfielder, he shone as Burnley stormed to promotion to the Championship in 2016.
That experience could prove to be invaluable as Sunderland prepare for another yet more midweek trips to Rochdale, Gillingham and Bristol.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
