Sunderland fans will be fearing the worst regarding the future of Jack Clarke this summer, with the former Tottenham Hotspur winger potentially clamouring for a new challenge, especially if the Premier League comes calling.
There's an argument that the mercurial 23-year-old has outgrown his Stadium of Light surroundings now, having bagged 15 goals last campaign in an otherwise uninspiring Black Cats team for the most part, with the likes of Southampton tempted to give Clarke an avenue back up to the top-flight this summer.
No soul-sapping double whammy will come Sunderland's way, however, with Fabrizio Romano revealing that Jobe Bellingham will stay fixed in his Wearside location, as the 18-year-old still has plenty of room to grow in the Championship.
No doubt, if Clarke does go, the former Birmingham City boy wonder will follow suit eventually for some mega bucks, in a similar fashion to a homegrown product who left for a big fee back in 2017.
Jack Clarke's time at Sunderland
Clarke has been a player that was thrust into the conscience of many a football fan from an early age for once being a highly tipped youngster, joining Tottenham Hotspur for £10m after starting his career as a wide-eyed winger at Leeds United.
That major move just didn't work for Clarke, who had to rebuild his tainted career at Sunderland, which he has done remarkably well.
Including last season's impressive 15-goal haul in the Championship, the electric ex-Whites attacker has amassed 27 goals and 22 assists from 112 total Sunderland appearances, with Clarke now champing at the bit to test himself in the top-flight again, even after his Spurs nightmare.
Sunderland will understandably be gutted to lose Clarke if he does finally move on this summer, with the standout Black Cats number 20 the only real recognised left-wing option in Regis Le Bris' squad at this moment in time, but the millions they could obtain from his sale would be presumably be reinvested to strengthen.
Jack Clarke's transfer value
According to Football Transfers, away from Sunderland's own high price-tag being slapped above Clarke's head, the in-demand winger is worth just £7.1m, but he will be sold on for far more than this.
Indeed, the reported fee that Sunderland could accept this summer stands at £30m.
Once worth just £844k back in 2020, right in the midst of his dire spell in North London, Sunderland will make some significant profit on Clarke if he is sold on for that dream price tag, with his value far lower than that when the Black Cats permanently purchased him in 2022.
2024
£7.1m (£30m asking price)
2023
£6.7m
2022
£3.5m
2021
£1.8m
2020
£844k
2019
£10m (Signed for Spurs)
Casting an eye over the table above, it could be a weirdly perfect time to part ways with Clarke from Sunderland's perspective, with his value known to fluctuate over the years, which means a dip in form with the Black Cats could see the Championship side sell him for way less than what is being predicted now down the line.
New Sunderland boss Le Bris will, of course, want to keep Clarke to give himself the best possible chance to be the manager that finally gets the Black Cats up to the Premier League.
But, it looks as if that could be a losing battle for the Frenchman to contend with, as Clarke dreams of a major move to try and replicate the rise of another former Sunderland player in Jordan Pickford, a man now starring with Everton and England.
Jordan Pickford's transfer value after leaving Sunderland
Much like Anthony Patterson managed to take over the first-team goalkeeping jersey after years in and around the youth structure on Wearside, Pickford – before becoming a household name – had to be patient as well for his time in the spotlight at Sunderland in the senior mix.
The now 30-year-old shot-stopper was routinely chucked out on loan before being given a chance to shine, playing for the likes of Carlisle United, Bradford City and Preston North End up and down the EFL, before his big break finally arrived.
The current hot-headed Everton man would only make 35 Sunderland appearances before being snapped up by the Toffees, who must have seen a lot of promise from his fleeting Black Cats minutes, with Pickford only picking up five clean sheets from those games.
He was thrown firmly into the deep end, however, making 29 appearances during the doomed 16/17 season that saw his hometown club finish rooted to the bottom of the Premier League, before Everton offered him an escape route away from having to rough it in the EFL once more.
1. GK – Jordan Pickford
2. RB – Billy Jones
3. CB – John O'Shea
4. CB – Wes Brown
5. LB – Patrick Van Aanholt
6. CM – Lee Cattermole
7. CM – Yann M'Vila
8. RM – Adam Johnson
9. CAM – Jermain Lens
10. LM – Danny Graham
11. ST – Jermain Defoe
The rest is history from Pickford's perspective after leaving Wearside behind for Merseyside in a hefty £30m transfer. He has gone on to become a reliable 'keeper for Sean Dyche's men with 279 appearances for Everton now tallied up, with a concrete starting spot as the Three Lions' first choice also coming his way.
He has even been described as being a "monster" by football content creator Josh Wright in the past, with his starring role in England's recent penalty shoot-out win against Switzerland in the Euros justifying that tag, coolly saving Manuel Akanji's spot-kick under immense pressure.
Pickford's worth still stands at a hefty £29m, according to Football Transfers, with Clarke hoping he can become a similarly established top performer in the Premier League, with Sunderland making some serious profit as a result.
That £30m sale remains Sunderland's highest-ever record departee, with Clarke rumoured to be going for around the same price the Black Cats managed to get out of the Toffees, after setting the Championship alight during bleak times last campaign for his side. As a result, they could well strike gold on both players.
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