Sunderland prepared to off-load strikers

Dec 1 2009 by Mark Douglas, The Journal

“I don’t know what is happening at the minute, but I would definitely be happy to stay. I like the club and enjoy being with the lads so I don’t see why I wouldn’t stay if the chance was there.” Much appears to rest on the futures of Bruce’s forgotten strikers, who have had few chances to prove themselves to the new Black Cats boss.

Murphy was wanted by Middlesbrough and Ipswich but a change in manager on Teesside has ended Boro’s interest in the Irish striker.

Roy Keane would still be willing to take the former Luton Town trainee, however, and there is also long-standing interest from Queens Park Rangers in the rangy forward.

Healy has also been told he can leave if he can find a new club, and the forward is understood to be resigned to leaving Sunderland after an unhappy period that has seen him fail to start a top-flight game. Coventry City are ready to launch a January bid and Healy would be a keen on a move that would re-ignite his flagging international career.

Meanwhile, Michael Turner has admitted that Sunderland are not doing themselves justice by failing to capitalise on taking the scalps of the Premier League’s big four.

The defender is at a loss to explain the away form that has left Bruce contemplating another shake-up for this weekend’s trip to Fulham.

“We’re not doing ourselves justice,” he said. “It’s all very well claiming some big scalps, but we’ve failed to follow that up.

“I don’t know what it is. It’s not over confidence – although we do go out and believe we are capable of winning these games. The gaffer wasn’t happy and I can’t blame him. We let him down and let ourselves down.

“They defended for their lives and that was possibly partly down to their last result but we should still have been better.”

Meanwhile, Sunderland spent a little over £2m on agents’ fees in the period from the beginning of October last year to the end of September this year, according to figures released last night by the Premier League. A total of £70m was handed over to players’ representatives by the current 20 top-flight clubs for their work in 803 transactions – an average of £87,000 per deal.