Sunderland has been urged not to seek a trade for a hot attacking player this January.

As the January transfer market begins in a week, Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris will be looking to strengthen his squad.

Sunderland may struggle to build a promotion-winning squad if key players like Jobe Bellingham and Chris Rigg are snapped up by Premier League and European clubs.

Due to injuries to Romaine Mundle and Tommy Watson, Le Bris had few alternatives in attack, forcing him to use Eliezer Mayenda in a new role on the left wing.

This region, however, might potentially benefit from the signing of one January transfer target that Sunderland could pursue; yet, they have been informed of one reason why they should seek elsewhere.

Michael Graham encourages Sunderland to seek elsewhere in their current pursuit of Louie Barry.

Aston Villa will recall Sunderland target Louie Barry from his loan at League One club Stockport County, making him eligible for a loan transfer.

With 14 goals from left-wing in a high-flying League One team, there don’t appear to be many negatives to signing the 21-year-old Englishman; yet, Michael Graham has provided one obvious reason why Sunderland should not consider the teenager.

Graham told X, “It’s going to be a scramble for this lad. I’m not convinced Sunderland should be engaged considering that we have two young players in that position to develop.

Sunderland can still nurture great talents with Louie Barry, but the balance needs to be precise.

While Graham’s assertion that there would be less emphasis on developing current academy players is somewhat correct, there is no reason why Sunderland couldn try to succeed with both.

Barry is just 21 years old, but his experience over the last two years has allowed him to play much above his years, which will undoubtedly help the growth of his opponents, such as Watson.

Sunderland and Kristjaan Speakman have also ensured that resources are in place to prioritise the development of young players, whether they are in the first team or the current academy set-up, and it is fair to say that one more addition would not upset the balance that the Black Cats currently have in place, especially given the current lack of squad depth.

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