Sunderland 'want' Tottenham striker Dane Scarlett on loan

The Black Cats, who head for Preston on Tuesday night in the Carabao Cup first round, remain in the hunt to sign at least one striker before the end of the summer transfer window.

Ideally, Sunderland would like to sign a senior more experienced frontman on a permanent deal but are also assessing Premier League youngsters as they look to bolster their forward line.

Scarlett, 20, is highly-rated at Tottenham but first team game-time will be hard to come by this season.

He spent the first half of last term on loan at Ipswich but was a fringe figure and recalled by Tottenham in the winter window. Ange Postecoglou would be keen to sanction another temporary switch this summer if there was an opportunity for Scarlett to feature regularly elsewhere.

Scarlett's Tottenham teammate Will Lankshear is also expected to head out on loan this summer and has been linked with a string of Championship clubs.

Asked whether Sunderland are interested in Premier League loans, Le Bris said: "Yes, for sure. We are observing all the possibilities.

"The quality of the player in different positions is very important, as well the link between them, their specific pathway and here and what we are building with this team. The mindset, the willingness to join the team, is very important."

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With two and a half weeks of the summer transfer window remaining, Sunderland's hierarchy are continuing their efforts to add much-needed firepower.

Le Bris said: "It's behind the scenes. At the moment I'm very focused on the team, as I explained before.

"We performed well against Cardiff with these players so my main focus is right. But obviously we want to improve the team.

"We know if we have the opportunity to do it, we will do it. It's not an easy market, many teams are searching for different positions, especially the striker. We're working hard on it and I'm confident we'll succeed."

While Sunderland's focus is on strengthening their squad, they may yet have to deal with some late interest from elsewhere, with Jack Clarke's situation continuing to be monitored by a string of Premier League clubs.

Last season's star man got off the mark with Sunderland's second goal in the opening day win at Cardiff but Le Bris isn't concerned by the ongoing speculation surrounding the former Leeds and Tottenham winger.

He said: "Yes, it's not a problem during the transfer window. At the end, the club is strong and we can build a strong team with these kinds of players.

"Jack can continue to grow here and maybe later become a very good player in the Premier League, I hope with Sunderland. Because we have many good players, speculation is normal. It's not a problem for me."