Sunderland: Kristjaan Speakman reveals news on Dennis Cirkin, Dan Neil contracts | OneFootball

Kristjaan Speakman has provided an update on the contract situation surrounding Dan Neil and Dennis Cirkin

Sunderland sporting director Kristjaan Speakman has revealed that work is being done to extend the contracts of Dan Neil and Dennis Cirkin.

The Black Cats have recently agreed new deals with the likes of Jobe Bellingham and Dan Ballard, as well as tying down Chris Rigg to a first professional contract.

Neil was made club captain over the summer, but now has just two years remaining on his current contract.

Meanwhile, Cirkin has started in all four of the team’s Championship games so far this season, contributing one goal and one assist (all stats from Fbref).

The left-back is also in the final two years of his current deal, raising questions over the futures of both players.

Speakman opens up on Sunderland contract situation

Speakman has confirmed that the club has the situation surrounding Cirkin and Neil on their radar following the closing of the summer transfer window.

He has claimed that contract signings are a constant process that they work on, and highlighted how important it was to tie down Bellingham, Rigg and Ballard in recent months.

“It’s [contracts for Neil and Cirkin] definitely on our radar," said Speakman, via The Northern Echo.

"The thing with contracts is that you get some complete, and then there’s always other ones that start moving closer.

“It’s a little bit like painting the Forth Bridge in that respect.

“It’s a constant piece of work, and we’ve always tried to be on the front foot with that element of things.

"I think to get a Ballard, a Jobe and a Chris Rigg recommitted to the club was incredible for us considering their value to the team and performance level, and also their value from a financial perspective.

"We were really pleased that those boys felt they were comfortable committing themselves here.

“It’s a journey we continue to go on though, and we want to retain our best talent.

"I’ve said before that retaining talent is often harder than acquiring fresh talent, but we’ll continue to trying to do that and trying to make sure we keep ourselves in a really positive place with our squad composition."

Sunderland’s start to the Championship season

Sunderland are the only side in the Championship with a 100 per cent record after four games, with 12 points from a possible 12.

Wins over Cardiff City, Sheffield Wednesday, Burnley and Portsmouth have given the team top spot going into the September international break.

Regis le Bris will be hoping the team can keep up this good form and fight for promotion this season.

Next up for Sunderland is a trip to face Plymouth Argyle on 14 September.

Keeping on top of contracts is key for Sunderland’s strategy

Sunderland have built their recruitment strategy on buying young players for relatively cheap sums and developing them into very valuable prospects through regular game time.

A key part of keeping the players’ value high is by making sure they don’t run down their contracts into the final 12 months.

Keeping on top of this is key to their strategy, and supporters will be delighted with the recent work being done on that front.