Sunderland are in talks to sign free agents Bailey Wright and Jay Spearing as Phil Parkinson looks to rebuild his squad this summer, according to the Northern Echo.
We should probably get used to the sight of lower league footballers swapping one club for another without a transfer fee.
After all, teams at third and fourth-tier level have been hit harder than anyone by the ongoing financial crisis and, as a result, absolutely no one in League One is going to be splashing the cash like the proverbial kid in a sweet shop this year.
Even Sunderland, the biggest and best supported team in the division, will have to box clever.
Signing two experienced, proven Football League performers for absolutely nothing looks, on paper at least, like an inspired piece of business.
Wright is without a club after his deal at Bristol City expired.
But, after an impressive loan spell at the Stadium of Light from January until April, the Australia international could be rewarded with a permanent contract.
Sunderland won four out of the five games Wright started, keeping four clean sheets along the way.
According to the Echo, he has settled into north east life quite smoothly and would jump at the chance to stick around.
Spearing, meanwhile, knows Parkinson well from their time together at Bolton Wanderers.
The Sunderland boss made the 31-year-old midfielder his captain in Lancashire and, after Spearing bid farewell to Blackpool last week, a reunion could be on the cards on Wearside as talks get underway.
“Spearo was immense,” Parkinson told The Bolton News of this former midfield favourite back in 2016. “Just that calmness on the ball as well as his heart, which is unquestioned.
“Having him out there is a big plus. Since I came into the club, I’ve said that a lot of managers are crying out for leadership but I have got a few players of that type and Jay is definitely one of them.”
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