Sunderland could now look to ‘fabulous’ 24-year-old as Jack Clarke replacement

According to a commentator, Sunderland “will be looking at” acquiring a winger, 24, to replace Jack Clarke.

 

With Jack Clarke emerging as a star in the Championship over the last two

years, Sunderland could lose him in a matter of months.

The 23-year-old has scored 24 goals and provided 16 assists in 80 games for the

Black Cats since they were promoted in 2022, and several Premier League clubs have taken notice of his outstanding play.

 

Even though Clarke’s contract is only expiring in two years, it is quite possible

that he will leave Wearside this summer, and their only chance to keep him would

have been if they had promoted him to the top division.

 

After six straight losses, that is definitely not going to happen, so Sunderland will

need to think about their alternatives for a replacement for their top player,

hopefully with the extra £20 million they will receive from his departure.

Although there hasn’t been much rumor about Clarke’s replacement, analyst Carlton Palmer has predicted that the

Championship team will pursue Mikey Johnston, a West Brom loanee.

 

“Mikey Johnston has continued his flying time at West Brom since he joined on loan in the January transfer window,”

Palmer remarked in an interview with Football League World. Ever since

coming from Celtic, he’s had an amazing experience.

 

Indeed, many teams will be observing how he plays, so you’ll be looking at teams that are considering players

moving on. Players like Jack Clarke and [Jon] Rowe will be leaving, and Mikey

Johnston will be considered as a potential replacement.

“But he’s enjoying his football there and is having a great time at West Brom.”

 

“But given his stellar play for West Bromwich Albion, Norwich, Sunderland,

and other potential Championship clubs will undoubtedly be keeping an eye on the situation.”

 

“Considering his performance in the Championship, I believe Celtic will be

looking at at least £2m or £3m, so I don’t think Johnston will fall into Sunderland’s

strategy of trying to sign young players and get them in cheap.

 

“We’ll see at the end of the season, but he’s definitely done excellent things at

West Brom and [is] drawing a lot of interest, so whether Sunderland have the

money to pay that, Norwich do have the money to pay for Mikey Johnston.”

Who is Mikey Johnston?

Mikey Johnston has been at Celtic since 2008, but has struggled with numerous injuries during his time with the senior team.

Having struggled to establish a regular place in their starting line-up, Johnston

went onto score once and bag four assists whilst on loan with Vitoria Guimaraes last season.

He has found a lot more success at West Brom though, netting six goals and providing one assist in only nine games.

The Republic of Ireland international has been essential to the Baggies’ bid for promotion, and Celtic may profit financially from his departure this summer by capitalizing on his strong play.

 

Johnston might be a very valuable addition to Sunderland’s front line if he can maintain his current level of play in the upcoming year.

 

Palmer wonders if we could afford the attacker, but if we were to get about eight times that money from Jack Clarke, £3 million would certainly seem doable.

 

Naturally, he would need to step up to fill Clarke’s shoes, but when our current star guy joined us, he wasn’t all that, and we all know what happened to him.

However, there might be a lot of competition for the Black Cats, and he might prefer a long-term transfer to West Brom.

 

But only if we genuinely look for Jack Clarke’s replacement rather than merely inserting Romaine Mundle into the left side and hoping no one sees the difference.