DAN Ballard says leaving Sunderland never crossed his mind this summer despite Premier League interest and the defender now wants to help the Black Cats put last season's disappointment behind them.

Premier League newcomers Ipswich Town and Will Still's Lens are two of the clubs to have shown an interest in Ballard this summer, but the former Arsenal youngster brought an end to the transfer speculation when he put pen to paper on a new contract at the Stadium of Light this week.

"Trying something new didn't come to my mind," said the 24-year-old on the interest from elsewhere.

"I like it here, I like the area, the people, I'm comfortable here. Now it's about pushing myself, trying to improve myself and hopefully helping the team.

"Sunderland gave me the opportunity to come and play in the Championship. I've really enjoyed my time here so far, and when they came forward to talk about a new deal it was the only thing I wanted to do."

Ballard's focus now is on getting fit and returning to action after the centre-half had minor surgery earlier this month on a knee injury suffered in the pre-season opener at South Shields.

He'll miss the Championship opener at Cardiff and will likely also be absent for the Carabao Cup first round tie at Preston and the Championship visit of Sheffield Wednesday, but hopes to be back in action before the end of August, with games against Burnley and Portsmouth also coming in the first month of the season.

"(The rehab) is going well well," he said.

"It was just a small thing that needed to clear up so I can play the full season with no issues.

"It was the right decision, no real dramas. I might miss the first couple of games but I'm hoping to be back and hopefully get another 40 or 50 games next season."

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Ballard had a couple of weeks on the training pitches with Regis Le Bris before he suffered his injury and liked what he saw and heard from the new boss.

"He seems like a brilliant coach," he said.

"He's a very clever man, he knows his style of football and has been trying to implement that. We have a couple more weeks before the season starts. I'm sure the boys will be training hard. He's an exciting coach and hopefully we can perform well for him when the season starts."

The aim for the Black Cats is undoubtedly to perform better than they did last season. It was a difficult campaign on and off the pitch on Wearside, with Sunderland slumping to a 16th placed finish, but Ballard was blown away by the support from the stands in turbulent times.

"Personally I've enjoyed my time at the club," said Ballard, who's made 66 appearances since joining two years ago.

"We had a great season the first year, disappointing last year but personally I played a lot more games and got to learn a lot more about the club. And to see the support when times were tough, it's made me want to achieve more and hopefully aiming for promotion we can give the fans something to cheer about.

"I've got a great connection with the fans, players and staff. It's been a lot of highs and lows, loads of memories to be made. Hopefully there can be lots of positive ones going forward."