SUNDERLAND are closing in on striker David Nugent, although they could be forced into accepting a part-exchange deal if they are to land the England Under-21 man.

Preston have already rejected a £6m bid from Manchester City for Nugent and are holding out for around £10m for one of the Championship's hottest properties.

And with Sunderland prepared to pay around £8m for the 22-year-old, the likelihood is that one of Roy Keane's other strikers will be offered as part of the deal.

Keane currently has five strikers on his books, so he can afford to allow at least one to leave, with Preston keen on a couple of the Black Cats' forwards.

It is unlikely Keane - who is on the verge of sealing a deal for Bolton's keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen - will be prepared to sell top-scorer David Connolly or Anthony Stokes, who only signed for £2m in January, leaving Stephen Elliott, Daryl Murphy or Stern John to be offloaded.

Keane is determined to land his man, but at the moment there has been little interest shown from other Premiership clubs, who appear to be reluctant to pay the inflated fee for a player yet to be tested in the top-flight.

Middlesbrough and Everton have been interested in the past, but are unwilling to match his current valuation.

A switch back to Merseyside, where he was born and bred, would appeal to Nugent, although Sunderland are the only club on the verge of making a concrete offer.

Preston had hoped to retain Nugent's services but a failure to gain promotion means manager Paul Simpson has had to resign himself to losing his star man.

Nugent turned 22 at the beginning of the month and he scored 15 goals in 43 Championship starts for North End.

His impressive form at club level was rewarded with a full England cap in the March victory over Andorra, when he emerged from the bench to pinch a goal on the line in the closing seconds.

A move to Wearside has not worked out for Spaniard Arnau Riera and it was confirmed yesterday that he has been told he can leave if a new club comes calling.

Murphy, meanwhile, earned his first Republic of Ireland cap on Wednesday. The former Waterford United striker played 85 minutes of the Irish's 1-1 draw with Ecuador in New York and he had a part to play in the goal.

He supplied the cross for Reading's Kevin Doyle to score and he could have scored himself had he not missed an early header from Doyle's centre.

Murphy's Sunderland team-mate, Stokes, appeared as a second half substitute.

Sunderland's pre-season trip to Ireland is already sold out.