"Stay put" - Anthony Patterson's Sunderland future debated amid Premier League talk | OneFootball

Sunderland goalkeeper Anthony Patterson has been linked with a move to the Premier League this summer.

Highlights

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Sunderland goalkeeper Anthony Patterson has been linked with a move to the Premier League this summer after another impressive season on Wearside.

Sunderland's first-choice goalkeeper, Anthony Patterson, is reportedly the subject of transfer interest from a few of the biggest clubs in England this summer, having kept 26 clean sheets in the Championship over the last two seasons.

A number of Premier League sides are rumoured to be tracking the 24-year-old. Arsenal and Liverpool were the first two clubs to be linked with the stopper by HITC, before they also reported that Manchester City were keeping tabs on the Sunderland academy graduate. Journalist Alan Nixon revealed via his Patreon account that Southampton were also interested in Patterson, as they prepare for their first season back in the top flight.

Sunderland have signed Simon Moore on a free transfer this summer to provide cover in their goalkeeping department, but it is unlikely that they will want to lose their number one during the current transfer window, especially so close to the start of the 2024/25 Championship season.

Fan pundit discusses Anthony Patterson's future

Football League World's Sunderland fan pundit, Keith Irving, feels that while Patterson will leave the Stadium of Light at some point in the future, now is not the time for him to move on. He also discussed another young goalkeeper who is on the books at Sunderland, and has been compared with England international Jordan Pickford.

Irving said: "You know, genuinely, with the rumour of Anthony Patterson potentially moving on, I think Sunderland fans would be more gutted about that than if Jack Clarke moved, and I mean that sincerely.

"I can't see it. I can't see Patto moving this season. He's on a long-term contract, he's a Sunderland lad - I believe he's still got a couple of years of development left in him too. There's areas of his game he does need to work on, but a very, very good keeper and he's growing all the time.

"There's some big clubs after him, you know, the likes of Liverpool have been mentioned, Arsenal, Man City have even been mentioned in there. Even rumour of a couple of clubs away from England as well, but the nature of goalkeeping means he has got time on his side. He doesn't need to rush into a move right now. "He's not even approaching the best years of his career yet, 'keepers can traditionally play a lot longer than outfield players, so he's got a bit of time to assess his options and see what he wants to do. "I think we will lose him eventually. He's an incredible shot-stopper, we've seen that. He's getting more confident every time we see him, and even if we got promoted in the next season or two, up into the Premier League, I still believe one of the big boys is going to come calling and make an offer that Sunderland just can't refuse. "I don't think everything is lost. I think the emergence of Matty Young is one to watch. He was absolutely incredible on loan at Darlington last season, winning a lot of praise from a lot of pundits, and his manager, Steve Watson, as well, the former Geordie. He's off to Salford City in League Two this season, which suggests his development has been very carefully assessed there. "It wouldn't surprise me to see Patto off next season, like I said, and that would open the door for Matty Young, who Darlo fans claim was better than a certain Jordan Pickford at the same age when they had him on loan too, so that's praise indeed.

"Yeah, Patto will stay put this season, but don't count it the same for next season."

Sunderland should look to keep hold of Patterson this summer

As Irving stated, at the age of 24, Patterson has plenty of time to develop his game further. He is under contract until 2028, and Sunderland should look to keep him for at least one more season.

Sunderland selling their first-choice goalkeeper at this stage of pre-season could cause issues, in the sense that by the time they found a replacement, their defensive unit would need to get used to each other during the first few games of the new campaign.

While it may be difficult if one of the biggest clubs in England comes in with a massive offer, Sunderland should definitely attempt to keep Patterson this summer if they can.