£12-15m” – Pundit urges Sunderland to make Jack Clarke fee tweak after Southampton FC news
Pundit Carlton Palmer believes Sunderland should reduce their valuation of winger Jack Clarke to around £12-15 million after it was revealed that Southampton have been deterred by the club’s high asking price.
Clarke starred in what was a disappointing campaign for Sunderland last season as they finished 16th in the table, and he was one of the most exciting players in the Championship.
All of Clarke’s 15 goals and four assists last season came before he picked up an ankle injury in February, and he struggled to regain his form after returning from over a month on the sidelines in April, but that does not detract from what was an outstanding campaign on an individual level.
Clarke was linked with a host of clubs in the January transfer window, including Burnley, West Ham United, Crystal Palace, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Everton, Bournemouth, Leicester City, Southampton, Brentford and Lazio, and he is attracting attention once again this summer.
Palace and Wolves reportedly remain keen on Clarke, while according to The Northern Echo, Sunderland were “braced for a formal approach” from Southampton for the 23-year-old following their promotion from the Premier League.
However, journalist Alan Nixon claims that despite being long-term admirers of Clarke, the Saints are “backing away from a deal” for the winger after being put off by the Black Cats’ £18 million valuation.
Carlton Palmer on Jack Clarke’s Sunderland future
Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Palmer said that this summer could be the best time for Sunderland to sell Clarke, and he believes the Black Cats should lower their valuation to around £12-15 million.
“Southampton are said to be backing away from a deal to sign Jack Clarke from Sunderland,” Palmer said.
“Sunderland have drawn their line in the sand with Clarke, he’s still got two years left on his contract.
“It’s a problem for Sunderland because if they don’t offload him this summer, and he doesn’t sign a new contract, then his fee will come down.
“Where is the fee going to lie? I don’t know, it’s a difficult one for Sunderland.
“When they look at the previous summer transfer window, it was believed that Burnley offered £10 million plus add-ons.
“They are not going to sell him for less than £10 million, I think a deal could between £12-15m, but even though Southampton are back in the Premier League, I don’t think they would want to be spending £18 million.
“He is a talented player, he scored a lot of goals for Sunderland last season and got a lot of assists in a side that was pretty poor.
“I think there’s still a deal to be done, if Sunderland are drawing their line in the sand at £18 million, they’ve got to be careful.
“At the end of next season, he’ll be in the final year of his contract, and if he stays, Jack may well sit out his contract.
“If they’re going to sell him, they’re going to have to sell him now.
“I would think they need to agree a fee, lower their valuation of him a little bit and get him out the door at £12-15 million.
“However, the new manager will be delighted if no deal is done because Jack’s a fantastic footballer, and as he proved last season with all the talk in the summer and all the talk in January, he just got on and played his football.”
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