Tony Mowbray hopes midfielder can become a Sunderland 'legend' as he confirms contract talks

Tony Mowbray has appeared to confirm contract talks with Dan Neil – and he hopes the midfielder can become a ‘legendary’ player at Sunderland.

Sunderland Nation broke the news this week that the Black Cats are close to extending Neil’s existing contract at the club in a bid to stave of growing Premier League interest.

That will be difficult, as Mowbray acknowledges, but he is confident a deal can get done and Neil can go on to build a genuine legacy with his boyhood club.

Asked about the Sunderland Nation exclusive that Dan Neil is close to signing a new deal, Mowbray said: "It's not my domain, but I am sure that these conversations are going on with our talented young players.

"What I would say about Kristjaan and the club - I reference Kristjaan because I don't know how much the owners behind him get involved on a daily basis because I'm not sitting in his office listening to who phones - is that I'm sure they know the ones we are trying to sign and the ones we are trying to give new contracts to.

"I know agents sometimes sit and think they're going to get £100,000 per week, but they are not going to get it. This club has a structure and it's really interesting.

"Clubs find it really difficult to break structures sometimes, and I never sit here stamping my feet and telling them they should be doing this or they need to be doing that. I coach the team, they produce the players, but I see the dilemmas.

"The better this team does with players of 21, 22, and 23, if they are very good then Premier League clubs with their huge riches will be enticing their agents and saying 'listen, we'll give him this much and we'll deal with Sunderland'.

“It becomes difficult to get deals done, but hopefully the deals can get done - especially for the local lads who want to play for their team in the Premier League, hoping that somewhere down the line they can become legendary players for this football club and get well paid along the way and enjoy the success of playing in front of these amazing supporters."

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