Hayes is reportedly allowed to leave Celtic on loan this month.
It has been a difficult spell for Jonny Hayes since his move to Scottish champions Celtic, and now the winger will be reportedly allowed to leave the Hoops on loan – and Sunderland have to take advantage.
Hayes, 31, joined Celtic after a wonderful 2016-17 campaign at Aberdeen that saw him score 11 goals as well as laying on an enormous 24 assists in 44 league and cup outings.
But after a few months of being in and out of the Celtic side following his move, Hayes suffered a horrific leg break against Dundee last December and was ruled out for the entire season.
This season, Hayes has managed just 301 minutes of senior football. Indeed, the Ireland international is now likely to struggle to gain any kind of playing time after Celtic completed the signing of Oliver Burke on loan from West Brom.
Jack Ross joined Sunderland as manager in the summer after guiding St. Mirren to promotion in the Scottish Premiership, and he has since been linked with a number of Celtic players.
The likes of Jack Hendry, Ryan Christie and Lewis Morgan have cropped up during his reign, but the Daily Star claim Hayes is available to leave on loan and he would be an excellent signing in their promotion chase this month.
Though they sit in third and only a point off second with a game in hand, Sunderland have come unstuck in their last five league games. They have only scored one goal in each of those matches.
Ross’ Sunderland need creation. They need a bit of ingenuity, a player that can split the lines and produce magic when it is least expected. Hayes has shown in recent years that he is more than capable of that.
Given a run of games, he will regain his form and begin to produce the kind of stats that saw him create 24 goals for Aberdeen in one season. That makes him the perfect Sunderland signing this month.
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