“Going to be concerned” – Carlton Palmer reacts to news involving Sunderland’s Jack Clarke and Patrick Roberts

Pundit Carlton Palmer admits Sunderland will be worried about transfer interest in Jack Clarke and Patrick Roberts, but believes they should stay at the club next season.

The pair played a key role as the Black Cats reached the Championship play-offs this campaign, where they were eventually beaten 3-2 on aggregate by Luton Town in the semi-finals.

Clarke scored 11 goals and registered 13 assists in 50 appearances in all competitions this season and is reportedly attracting attention from Premier League duo Brentford and Crystal Palace, but TEAMtalk claim that Sunderland have offered the 22-year-old a new deal to fend off growing interest from elsewhere.

Roberts scored five goals and registered seven assists in 48 appearances this campaign and journalist Alan Nixon reported that he could be cashed in on this summer with just a year remaining on his contract.

Nixon says that goalkeeper Anthony Patterson and midfielder Dan Neil also have admirers, with the club bracing themselves for offers for their young talent over the coming months.

What did Carlton Palmer say?

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Palmer conceded that the Black Cats will be worried by the speculation, but says that Clarke and Roberts should both remain at the Stadium of Light.

“Sunderland have just lost in the play-off semi-finals to Luton and are now bracing themselves to fend off offers for Jack Clarke and Patrick Roberts,” Palmer said.

“This is always an issue for a club when you have talented players and it’s not just the summer now, it’s the January transfer window.

“Sunderland have proven they will give youngsters a chance, so players are less likely to want to move to sit on the bench and if they were to move to a Premier League club, they would only be loaned back out anyhow.

“While Sunderland are going to be concerned about offers, the club have very, very big ambitions and hopefully they will be looking to go one better and the players will look at the opportunity of maybe getting automatic promotion next season with Sunderland.”

Will Sunderland keep Jack Clarke and Patrick Roberts?

It will be difficult for Sunderland to keep hold of both Clarke and Roberts.

They would be incredibly tough to replace and with Amad Diallo unlikely to return for a second loan spell from Manchester United next season, they will lose a significant amount of creativity and attacking threat if Clarke and Roberts were also to depart.

Palmer is right that there could be an opportunity for success at the Stadium of Light next season after their outstanding achievement of making the top six this campaign, but the uncertainty over manager Tony Mowbray’s future makes it difficult to assess the Black Cats’ promotion prospects at this point.

Clarke is probably the more sellable asset of the pair who would bring in the most profit for the club, but given his importance to the team, the Black Cats will desperately want to keep hold of him.