Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris made feelings clear on Jack Clarke…

Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris has urged Leeds United target Jack Clarke to stay at the Stadium of Light beyond the end of the transfer window. The Black Cats are keen to keep hold of their key man following their impressive start to the new Championship season.

Clarke, who is 23-years-old, is on the Whites’ radar right now as they hunt for some attacking reinforcements. However, they are not understood to be in pole position for his signature due to expected top flight interest in him. Leeds could do with some more firepower on the wing following Crysencio Summerville’s exit to West Ham. Daniel Farke’s side are also poised to lose Georginio Rutter to Brighton and Hove Albion.

Sunderland won 4-0 at home to Sheffield Wednesday over the weekend and have picked up six points from their first two fixtures under their new manager. Former FC Lorient coach Le Bris told Clarke earlier this month that he should remain where he is: “I think his position with us is perfect. Let’s not change anything! Stay with us, keep growing because we need this kind of player. The rest, I don’t know. He’s an important player for us, for sure.”

He added: “I’m only focused at the moment on the team. On the recruitment, I know behind the scenes the club is working very hard to find the right solution. All the teams in this league want to improve their squad and we know that we can give something more, for sure. We will see during the next week.

“The players we have at the moment in this position are good and talented but are too young to support the pressure of the Championship where there is so many games. If they start too early in that position, it won’t help them or help the team. So we have to find the right competition in this position and the right hierarchy inside the club, for sure.”

Clarke still has two years left on his contract with the North East outfit so they are under no pressure to cash in on him. He rose up through the academy ranks at Leeds and scored two goals in 25 games under Marcelo Bielsa before Tottenham Hotspur came calling.

The York-born man spent three years in London, some of which he spent out on loan with the Whites along with Stoke City and QPR, before Sunderland signed him. He has since become one of their Black Cats’ most prized assets and has fired 27 goals in 94 games in all competitions, 15 of which came in the last campaign.Clarke said during pre-season: “I’d like to think I can keep improving and as a team we can keep improving, but they might just be words. But you’d like to think I can and we can and that’s what I’m striving for so we’ll see.

“In a sense (last season was really good) but I still feel like I could have brought a lot more. I’ll try to bring a lot more as the season unfolds. There was still a lot of chances I missed and still a lot more I could have done, hopefully I’ll bring that this season.

“Thankfully for me the break came at a good time to give my injury a rest and time to heal. Like everyone else, I’m still trying to get up to match speed and fitness and dust off the cobwebs. Hopefully by the time the season starts I’ll be back at my best.”