Sunderland are in preparations for next season in the Championship which kicks off next Sunday in their opener against newly-promoted Ipswich Town at the Stadium of Light.
The Black Cats have had an active transfer window so far with Jenson Seelt, Luis Semedo, Jobe Bellingham and Bradley Dack joining the club this summer in their pursuit to push for a Premier League return over their 46-game campaign ahead.
Tony Mowbray led his team to a sixth-place finish in their first season back in the second tier, qualifying for a spot in the play-offs, but had their top-flight return dreams rapidly crushed after losing 2-0 to Luton Town at Kenilworth Road, the club that went on to be victorious in the battle for the final Premier League spot.
Now the Sunderland boss will be wanting to build upon those high standards set last season and there will be a huge expectation for the North East club to compete for automatic promotion, something that will be no easy task with Leeds United, Southampton and Leicester City joining the battle.
Will Sunderland sign more players?
Despite signing former Blackburn Rovers ace, Dack, just a few days ago there is certainly still plenty of opportunity for Sunderland to strengthen key areas of their squad to give them their best chance to compete comfortably.
It has been reported by TEAMtalk that the club are currently struggling to hold onto goal-machine Ross Stewart, with the player refusing to commit his future by signing a new contract on numerous occasions and attracting interest from a number of clubs.
However, it has also been claimed by journalist Alan Nixon this week that Sunderland are eyeing up a loan move for Everton striker Tom Cannon, a talented young prospect who could follow in the footsteps of fellow Premier League club academy graduate, Amad Diallo.
Who is Tom Cannon?
The 20-year-old centre-forward is a product of Everton's youth academy, where he has risen through the ranks to become a well-rounded and prolific goal-scorer.
For the Merseyside club's U18s and U21s, Cannon scored 51 goals and registered 14 assists, earning the opportunity to breakthrough into first team football when he joined Preston North End on a six-month loan last season.
Over 20 Championship appearances, the Irishman – hailed a "bright spark" by journalist Tom Sandells – scored eight goals, registered one assist and created four big chances, as well as averaging 2.3 shots on goal and 1.1 successful dribbles per game, demonstrating the explosive impact he made on his team.
Preston manager Ryan Lowe spoke out about Cannon's influence during his short-stint at the club, full of compliments for the young goalscorer:
"He’s been a breath of fresh air,"
"He has been excellent. I watched Tom a few times for Everton Under-21s and I thought to myself ‘he has definitely got an eye for goal’."
Sunderland have had recent success from dipping into Premier League academies to loan attacking talent, with Manchester United's Diallo becoming a stand-out performer for the club during his loan spell at the Stadium of Light; scoring 13 goals, registering three assists and creating four big chances over 37 appearances.
With that being said, Mowbray could now repeat Sunderland's Diallo masterclass this summer by snapping up the services of Cannon and if he could continue his strong development, he could be a hugely valuable asset to the club.