Sunderland have seemingly been priced out of a deal for Kevin Nisbet with Hibernian demanding in excess of £3 million for their star striker, as reported by the Daily Record.
Fortunately, the Black Cats have already brought in a new centre-forward capable of easing the goalscoring burden on Charlie Wyke at the Stadium of Light.
But Ross Stewart, signed on a bargain £300,000 deal from Ross County on Sunday, can’t hold a candle to Nisbet when it comes to finding the net in the top flight of Scottish football.
Stewart has scored nine times in 40 Premiership games since the start of 2019/20.
Compare that with Nisbet (11 in 23 matches this season alone) and you can see why one of Sunderland’s striker targets is far more expensive than the other – even if Stewart’s market value was dragged down by the fact his County contract was due to expire in the summer.
The Scottish Sun reported a month ago that Sunderland were at the front of the queue for Nisbet’s signature.
But, with Hibs demanding a seven-figure sum and with Championship clubs expressing an interest in the diminutive poacher, a move to the Stadium of Light started to look increasingly unlikely as the window wore on.
The Record now claims Birmingham City have seen a £3 million offer rejected.
Given the financial limitations all clubs in the third tier face – not to mention a prohibitive salary cap – Sunderland aren’t going to get involved in a bidding war for Nisbet’s signature any time soon.
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