SAM ALLARDYCE has instructed Sunderland chairman Ellis Short to thrash out a deal to keep Yann M’Vila at the Stadium of Light beyond this season after securing Premier League status with a match to spare.

The French midfielder has settled in well on Wearside and has been one of the most consistent performers in a struggling team since before Allardyce’s arrival.

M’Vila has indicated a willingness to extend his stay, although his situation at Rubin Kazan is complicated and that is why Sunderland will have to move quickly to try to sort out a deal.

The 25-year-old, who moved to Kazan for £9m in 2013 from Rennes and has had time on loan at Inter Milan, will still have a further six months to run on his contract with the Russian club once the Premier League season comes to an end.

And Sunderland accept negotiations could be difficult with Kazan, although they are known to be happy enough for him to leave permanently. M’Vila suggested a couple of months ago that he was trying to have the remaining term of his deal paid up.

Allardyce, whose side close the curtain on the season at Watford tomorrow, said: “Yann wants to stay, so one of things we have to do is start that negotiation. That will be difficult, but we’ll try. That is one of the priorities.”

Plans to hold detailed talks with Short next week are in place for Allardyce and he is keen for a number of Sunderland’s Under-21s to gain some valuable Premier League experience at Vicarage Road. Jordan Pickford, George Honeyman, Tom Robson and Rees Greenwood are expected to be involved before he makes moves in the transfer market.

Allardyce is frustrated that a number of Sunderland’s younger players will not be able to head out on loan next season because of a change of rules, whereby the shorter emergency loan option for Football League clubs has been scrapped. All temporary transfers must either be full or half-season loans.

“Don’t forget we have this massive problem of producing our own players in this country,” said Allardyce. “That is one of the worst things to ever happen in this country - it’s probably why we should vote out of the EU!

“If we can vote out then we won’t have to take UEFA law - because that is crap. Their diabolical rules are spoiling the chance for youngsters to develop in this country. We can’t send our young players on loan anywhere, only for a year.

“All the top players in this country have been loaned out. Jermain Defoe was loaned out, Harry Kane, all of them. That is the way to help a player develop as quickly as he can. Not in the Under-21s - that’s garbage. There is no competitive edge, you have to play against men as quickly as you can. That develops the player.”

Allardyce, sacked by Newcastle in 2008 after a mediocre start to the campaign, thinks it’s sad the his former club have dropped out of the top tier.

He said: “I would have liked us to both stay up. I know Sunderland fans might not like me for saying that, but I’ll miss the competitive edge of the derby. I know we’ll get the game against Middlesbrough next season, but it’s not the same.

“The derby day, even though as a manager you are sitting on the edge thinking ‘we can’t afford to lose this one', is still one of the fixtures of the year. We all look forward to it and coping with the disappointment sometimes is part of its beauty. Not having that fixture, that challenge, next year is a loss for this area.”

Allardyce only lasted eight months at St James’ Park and is hoping for a much longer stint at Sunderland, although at the ripe age of 61 he has realised nothing is certain in football.

He said: “I see myself taking it one year at a time based on the volatility of this God damn game. I’ll never look further than that. I look forward my conversation with Ellis because it has been such a great achievement for me to stay up and I want to take this club forward.”