Sunderland were close to agreeing a permanent move for Everton's Nathan Broadhead before he ultimately chose a loan switch to Wigan - with Alex Neil saying the performances of Ellis Simms and Ross Stewart at the weekend played a part in the striker's decision. Broadhead spent last season on loan with the Black Cats and helped the club win promotion to the Championship via the play-offs.
He was one of the club's main attacking transfer targets this summer and Neil says the club 'weren't far away' from bringing him back to Wearside on a full-time basis. But Broadhead's Everton teammate Simms, who joined the Black Cats on loan at the end of July, scored twice on his debut at Bristol City on Saturday, while last season's 26-goal top scorer Stewart also got off the mark, and the implication is that Broadhead felt he would not be guaranteed regular starts at Sunderland.
With the 24-year-old having broken into the Wales squad at the end of last season, albeit he later withdrew through injury, and with the Dragons heading to this winter's World Cup, regular starts will be a must if Broadhead wants to play a part in his country's first World Cup tournament appearance since 1958. "When he was here, Nathan did remarkably well for us, so we are grateful for the time that we had him here," said Neil.
READ MORE: Nathan Broadhead ends hopes of Sunderland return after signing for Wigan
"Equally, there has been a lot of talk about us and Nathan over the summer and our preference would have been to bring Nathan here on a permanent deal, because we want to sign young players who have their best years ahead of them. The fact is, he has rocked up at Wigan and good luck to him.
"There were a lot of discussions taking place and we weren't far away from an agreement, but then Saturday happened and we got two goals from one striker [Simms] and one goal from another [Stewart]. I think that can sometimes change people's views on things."
Despite his disappointment in missing out on Broadhead, Neil is philosophical about the situation. He said: "If I had to turn around and tell you how many times that has happened to me as a manager, you wouldn't believe it.
"In football, nothing is done until it is done - and even then it might get undone! We just have to crack on and go and get the next one [transfer target]."
Broadhead made a huge contribution to Sunderland's cause last season, scoring ten goals in 20 league outings despite missing a large chunk of the campaign with a serious hamstring injury. But with him now out of the equation, Sunderland are still looking to add at least one striker before the transfer window closes at the end of the month, with Neil under no illusions that he needs backup for Simms and Stewart.
He said: "We need more cover because, if you look at last season, we had Ross and Broady [Broadhead] but for large spells Broady was injured. What happened then was that the burden on Ross was far too great, and at this level you can't afford to have just one player for that position - particularly in last year's scenario where one player [Broadhead] was missing for large parts.
"On the broader point, we need players who are going to come here and back themselves and believe that they are going to contribute to what we are doing. It takes a certain type of mentality to do that at this club because of the scrutiny and the pressure that come with it.
"Sometimes, that's not for everybody."
READ NEXT:
- Aiden McGeady sends James McCarthy transfer message amid Sunderland links
- Ellis Simms sounds a warning to the Championship after Sunderland's strikers hit it off
- Nigel Pearson bemoans Bristol City's defensive 'frailty' as Sunderland earn first victory
- Alex Neil believes Sunderland's win at Bristol City will transform the perception of their start
- Alex Neil hails Sunderland's 'unbelievable' front two after Bristol City win amid transfer update
