This should be Sunderland winger Jack Clarke’s next club

Sunderland winger Jack Clarke is expected to leave the Stadium of Light this summer, with Burnley said to hold the strongest interest but Brentford, Crystal Palace, Everton, Rangers, and Wolves also keen, sources have exclusively informed Football League World.

The winger enjoyed an outstanding 2022/23 season and scored nine goals whilst claiming a further 12 assists in Championship and play-off matches this season.

Tony Mowbray’s side reached the Championship play-offs against the odds, and the 22-year-old has been a key cog in Sunderland flying up the table, taking huge strides forward in his personal development in the process.

The Black Cats missing out on promotion means they will be playing in the second tier next term, which will make holding onto some of their brighter talents more difficult this summer.

Clarke, in particular, is of interest from teams higher up the footballing ladder. If a major offer comes in, it’s hard to see a world where Sunderland would reject it.

Who will Jack Clarke join this summer?

Clarke is a Premier League player in terms of his quality already and will almost certainly depart, but should make Sunderland decent money in the process.

Clarke joined Sunderland permanently last summer, following a successful loan spell in League One, for a low fee that could rise to around £10 million with add-ons, and signed a four-year contract until 2026.

The add-ons are unlikely to all have been met, with some ambitious clauses included in case Sunderland had been promoted. Clarke’s departure will, of course, be a blow; but will turn them a good profit.

Despite the interest in Burnley reportedly being the strongest, the club Clarke should be looking to join most is Brentford.

Why should Clarke join Brentford?

He would naturally fill the Nathan Tella void at Burnley, or help to offset the potential loss of out of contract Wilfried Zaha at Crystal Palace, and would almost certainly start for Everton who lack quality in depth through their wide and attacking options.

However, Brentford are the most stable club out of them all currently, and a progressive side who are not against utilising young talent. That isn’t to say that the other clubs don’t give chances to their young players, but not to the extent that Brentford are willing to bed in young talent.

Outside of Bryan Mbuemo and Yoanne Wissa, there is a dearth of options who have been readily available to Brentford, with Keane Lewis-Potter sidelined for much of this campaign.

However, looking at the development of Mbuemo under Thomas Frank may give Clarke an idea of what he could develop into on the left side of Brentford’s attacking trio.

This next move for Clarke is imperative to get right, after the failed move to Spurs, he cannot afford to get the next transfer to the Premier League wrong, and needs assurances of game time and, crucially, development.

Brentford will afford him that, and they should be the club he chooses to join this summer.