EVERTON will pull out of the race for Sunderland's Claudio Reyna if they sign Scottish midfielder Barry Ferguson.

The Toffees have made a renewed £6m bid for Rangers star Ferguson as they seek a new middle-man following the breakdown of Sean Davis' switch to Goodison Park.

And Reyna is among manager David Moyes' list of other targets should he miss out on Ferguson.

There is currently a two-way battle for the Ibrox captain as Blackburn Rovers, managed by former Gers boss Graeme Souness, have already had two bids turned down.

But Rovers are expected to make renewed efforts to recruit the player and Souness is known to be desperate to add Ferguson's talent to his squad.

Sunderland still want to offload Reyna and Michael Gray before the closure of the transfer window on Sunday.

And Reyna could still complete a switch to Fulham despite transfer-listed Davis returning to Loftus Road after failing to clinch the move he craved to Merseyside.

Cottagers' boss Chris Coleman still wants to boost his playing staff and is hoping to persuade the United States' skipper, valued at £2.5m, to uproot to the capital.

The Black Cats are also expected to sell Gray. The out-of-favour left-back is being tracked by Portsmouth and Leeds.

It is understood Pompey boss Harry Redknapp is hoping to sign him on the cheap before the transfer deadline passes.

Should Gray and Reyna move, they will follow star names Tore Andre Flo, Kevin Phillips, Gavin McCann and Thomas Sorensen out of the Stadium of Light exit door.

New club captain Jason McAteer has declared himself fit to face Bradford City on Saturday after recovering from a hamstring strain.

The Republic of Ireland international missed Sunderland's victories over Preston and Watford.

Meanwhile, Sunderland's First Division clash with Rotherham United has been rescheduled for October 21. The match was originally due to take place on September 6 but several Sunderland players will be involved in international fixtures.

* First-half strikes from recent acquisition Colin Healy and trialist Clive Delaney helped Sunderland's second string to keep their unbeaten start to the season intact with a 3-2 win away to Leeds United last night.

Healy stole into the centre on 36 minutes to smash a fierce drive past keeper Nigel Martyn after good work from Chris Brown and Michael Proctor.

Delaney added a second moments later when he raced into the box to meet Thomas Butler's corner with a pinpoint header.

Striker Chris Brown put the Black Cats firmly in the driving seat following the break with a close-range effort following a long pass by Babb, making his return from a foot injury.

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