TONY MOWBRAY has revealed that the “wheels are rolling” with Sunderland’s summer recruitment drive, but the Black Cats boss admits the club’s transfer policy will largely be determined by which league they are playing in next season.

While Mowbray’s primary focus in the last few days has been on preparations for tomorrow’s play-off semi-final first leg against Luton Town, he has also been involved in transfer discussions with sporting director Kristjaan Speakman.

Sunderland have already begun the pursuit of a number of potential summer targets, with Mowbray part of the wider recruitment team that is responsible for the identification and signing of players.

The Black Cats are keen to adopt a proactive approach to transfers, hence their desire to start making progress before the end of the season. However, with a place in the Premier League at stake over the course of the next three weeks, it is impossible to make too many hard-and-fast decisions at the moment.

“As I sit here now, the wheels are rolling,” said Mowbray. “They are in motion. It’s good, because the wheels need to move. This year has shown that.

“I’m involved in the recruitment. Kristjaan is coming into my office and we are discussing players. Everything lands on my laptop for me to look at and check – snapshots of players from around the world that we have on our radar. I always give them feedback. I tell them, ‘He’s good, I like this one, I think this one is better than that one’. But, obviously, the conversations will be different depending on what league we’re in next season.”

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If Sunderland were to win promotion, Mowbray would not want to completely overhaul the squad that has done so well for him this season. However, with Amad Diallo and Joe Gelhardt only on loan, and doubts over the long-term future of Edouard Michut, there would be an obvious need to make significant reinforcements to enable the Black Cats to cope in the top-flight.

“If by some weird way, we do win the next three games, then we have to take the core of this squad with us,” said Mowbray. “But you’d have to fill in around it and give it some depth. You can’t put young Under-23s in to play against world-class footballers.

“We’d need a squad and depth, but I’m pretty sure that’s what the club would do. They’re switched on, know what they want and have a model. And if you get to the Premier League, you have the finances to make that model work.”