UNSETTLED Sunderland striker Andy Gray is expected to leave the club next week, with Championship strugglers Burnley negotiating a permanent deal.

Gray's future has been the subject of some conjecture in recent weeks, with both Preston and Leeds having made approaches.

Leeds boss Kevin Blackwell is keen to sign a temporary replacement for the injured Richard Cresswell, while Preston's Billy Davies stepped up his search for a new striker on Wednesday after David Nugent was ruled out for at least two months.

But the two promotion hopefuls are only interested in taking Gray on loan until the end of the season,

Sources in Lancashire suggest Burnley are willing to guarantee a permanent contract once an initial loan period expires and, with Sunderland's board keen to offload one of former manager Mick McCarthy's most unsuccessful summer signings, that has been enough to promote the Clarets to the front of queue.

Gray, who made a £1.1m move from Sheffield United, began his Black Cats career with a goal on his debut. But since the opening day of the season the Scotland international has failed to find the net in 21 consecutive appearances.

That led McCarthy to leave him out of his first-team squad and alerted a host of Championship clubs to his possible availability.

The former Leeds, Bradford and Sheffield United striker was clearly deemed surplus to requirements but, while his former manager had lost faith in his ability, he was unwilling to lose the striker on a temporary basis without the guarantee of a permanent move.

Burnley were willing to meet his demands, but a January offer of £400,000 was rejected.

Clarets boss Steve Cotterill has returned to the negotiating table and, with McCarthy having left the Stadium of Light, the former Sunderland assistant is confident of striking an acceptable deal

Given the financial consequences of their impending relegation, the Wearsiders will be hoping to recoup the majority of their summer outlay, although the bulk of any fee is likely to be dependent on both appearances and Burnley's performance next season.

Gray is not the only striker to have been linked with a move as reports in Yorkshire suggested Huddersfield had offered the misfiring Jon Stead a return to his first club.

Terriers boss Peter Jackson last night denied making an offer for the 22-year-old and, while Gray is unlikely to appear for Sunderland again, caretaker boss Kevin Ball is expected to name Stead as a substitute when his side travel to Bolton tomorrow.

The former Blackburn striker, who is still searching for his first Sunderland goal, will be joined on the bench by Gary Breen, despite the club captain returning from the one-game suspension he served last weekend.

Ball handed the captain's armband to Steve Caldwell ahead of the 1-0 defeat to Wigan and, in a clear snub to Breen, the stand-in boss will keep faith with both the Scotsman and Danny Collins.

"I thought both Steve and Danny played very well last weekend. They were up against a tough front pairing but they impressed me with the way they played," explained Ball.

He also has the option of naming Neill Collins ahead of Breen following the youngster's unscheduled return from a loan spell at Sheffield United.

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