Sunderland are interested in former Wolverhampton Wanderers and Norwich City goalkeeper John Ruddy, reports claim.
The Black Cats have reportedly put the 35-year-old keeper on their radar this summer window according to a report from the Mirror (05.06.21, pg 69) (via The Boot Room).
Ruddy is incredibly experienced between the sticks and is a free agent following his release from Premier League side Wolves.
Ruddy has earned promotion a number of times before from the Championship at both Wolves and the Canaries, with Sunderland head coach Alex Neil having already worked with him at Norwich City in their promotion winning campaign back in 2014/15.
A smart signing…
Currently Sunderland’s only keeper who would challenge for the senior squad is academy product Anthony Patterson.
He became the Wearsiders number one following Thorben-Hoffmann’s unfortunate illness which kept him out of contention for a number of weeks and after both he and Lee Burge departed the club last month, Sunderland need a keeper to compete with Patterson for that starting spot.
With Patterson only being 22-year-old and having spent just half-a-season in Sunderland’s senior squad, an experienced head who has been there and done it like Ruddy could be incredibly beneficial for his development.
Despite Ruddy’s age and the fact he is clearly entering the final chapter of his career, as a goalkeeper you would imagine he is still capable of another couple of seasons at Championship level.
His promotion experience will be crucial in the Sunderland dressing room and it is evident the Sunderland hierarchy feel this is the best way to build their squad as they enter their first year back in the second tier.
