Sunderland are reportedly tracking Bayern Munich defender Jan Kirchhoff to bolster their defence and lift them above relegation zone safely for the current season.
Sam Allardyce is looking to sign a centre-back in the January transfer window and the latest player linked with this is Jan.
Sunderland scouts have a keen interest for the versatile defender who stands tall at 6ft 5in.
Jan is known for his strong headers and has previously played for Mainz and on loan at Schalke.
A defensive midfielder with good skills would certainly help Sunderland and the 25-year old’s contract with Bayern Munich ends next summer.
Jan generally plays at centre-back or a defensive midfield position in most of his games.
Sunderland has three main central defenders as of now in, John O’Shea, Sebastian Coates and Younes Kaboul favoured in the 3-5-2 formation.
With the departure of Lee Congerton as Sporting Director, Sam has his hands full, taking complete responsibility in organizing Sunderland’s transfer deals in the January transfer window.
Sam is apparently looking for a central defender and also a centre forward in the upcoming transfer window.
There have been rumours that the club is also seeking the services of James Collins.
According to German publication kicker.de, a delegation from Sunderland visited Bayern’s training ground to discuss a possible move for the 25-year-old and a positive reply has been given to Sunderland.
Kirchhoff has struggled to make an impact at Bayern, since joining from Mainz.
The defender also had a bad loan spell at Schalke and did not cope up with the standards expected at Bayern Munich and was recently dropped to Bayern’s reserve squad.
Veteran Wes Brown has made just one appearance this season while right-back Billy Jones has also struggled to hold the defence.
With all this in mind, it is good that Sunderland is seeking a defender with untapped potential.
Sunderland are expected to meet Bayern’s demands for the player easily and his abilities would help the Black Cats certainly.