JACK ROSS claims that some of the players expected to leave Sunderland this summer could yet remain on the club’s books with his blessing.

There are expected to be a host of high-profile departures from the Stadium of Light this summer, with a number of senior figures having expressed a desire to move on in the wake of last season’s relegation to League One.

Stewart Donald recently stated that Lee Cattermole, George Honeyman and Joel Asoro have asked for a transfer, and it is understood that Lamine Kone and Papy Djilobodji are also keen to leave Wearside this summer.

Wahbi Khazri and Bryan Oviedo are yet to return to pre-season training because of their involvement at the World Cup, but as established internationals, they are unlikely to be happy at the prospect of playing in League One.

That makes it difficult for Ross to begin planning for next season, but the Sunderland boss claims that in a number of cases, the situation is not clear-cut.

Having spoken to most of the supposedly unsettled players on the training ground this week, Ross feels there is a chance that some will opt to remain with the Black Cats beyond the end of the transfer window.

“I think there’s probably quite a few where it is not quite black and white,” he said. “There are some where it is, and that’s fine, but there’s others where conversations have been relayed through third parties and it’s not always clear.

“Agents and representatives have their own job to do in terms of promoting players, and where that might take them, but speaking to players face-to-face has been good.

“There’s quite a few who like it and enjoy it, and some who have said to me they’ve been part of the demise in the last couple of years and so are eager to try and take it back up.”

Sunderland’s financial position means they need some of their remaining high earners to move on this summer, but Ross is confident he will be able to hold on to a couple of his more senior players if he decides their attitude is right.

“If we’re in a position where we offload some who are desperate to go and have been on Premier League contracts, then it allows us to be comfortable in the sense of carrying some who are really good players,” he said.

“That’s determined by their hunger to stay, and the ones I’ve worked with so far, I’ve not seen any suggestion that they’re not keen. But it is very fluid at the moment, and it is very difficult for me to predict what team I’ll have at the start of the season.”