SUNDERLAND have turned to the man who helped mastermind Leicester City’s remarkable rise as they look to transform their own fortunes in the wake of their relegation to the Championship.

The Black Cats have appointed scouting expert Rob Mackenzie to work under their new chief football officer, Simon Wilson, as they look to overhaul their squad this summer.

David Moyes has told Ellis Short he wants to sign up to a dozen new players once the transfer window reopens, with the same number expected to leave the Stadium of Light this summer.

Mackenzie will help in a consultancy capacity, having been a key figure in Leicester’s remarkable rise that culminated in them claiming the Premier League title.

The 31-year-old recruitment expert helped assemble the squad that topped the table under Claudio Ranieri, and was heavily involved in the £350,000 deal that saw Leicester capture Riyad Mahrez from Le Havre.

He left the King Power Stadium to become head of player identification at Tottenham, but re-joined Nigel Pearson at Derby County as their director of recruitment at the start of the current campaign.

Moyes is still to commit his long-term future to Wearside, but having met Short at the start of last week, the Scotsman appears keen to remain at the Stadium of Light.

Sunderland still have three more games to play in the current campaign, and while he will not be throwing in youngsters for the sake of it, Moyes is hoping some of his younger players will gain valuable experience from their exposure to the first-team squad.

“I want to win the games, and I really don’t think lads like (Josh) Maja or Joel (Asoro) are ready to start Premier League games,” said the Black Cats boss. “I might try to give them minutes, but there’s Donald Love, George Honeyman, even Didier Ndong is a young player.

“I think we’re giving young players a chance. All the young players were (at Hull), and I want them to see what it is looking like because a lot of them will be involved next season.”