SUNDERLAND are hoping to push through a deal for Ross McCormack after the Aston Villa striker was left out of his side’s pre-season tour of Germany.

Another Black Cats target, Tommy Elphick, was also left out of the Villa squad that travelled to Germany at the weekend, although Sunderland’s interest in the centre-half is dependent on Lamine Kone’s future at the Stadium of Light.

Simon Grayson is keen to make significant transfer progress this week, and the Sunderland boss has been in touch with officials at Bournemouth to discuss potential moves for Marc Wilson and Lewis Grabban.

However, McCormack currently tops his wanted list and Sunderland chief executive Martin Bain will spend the next 24 hours trying to engineer a deal for the Scottish striker.

McCormack clashed publicly with Villa boss Steve Bruce last season, but it looked as though the pair had patched up their differences when the 30-year-old was involved in some early pre-season games.

His omission from Villa’s tour of Germany effectively signals the end of his Villa Park career, although it will not be easy for Sunderland to agree the terms of a deal to take him to Wearside.

Villa shelled out £12m to sign McCormack from Fulham in 2016, with the forward signing a four-year deal that is not due to expire until 2020. If Sunderland were to sign McCormack permanently this summer, they would not want to pay more than £4m, so a loan deal could be the best option. However, even that would not be simple to enact, as Sunderland would be reluctant to pay the whole of the striker’s current wages.

Nevertheless, there is a shared determination to try to agree a deal, with Grayson desperate to add to his side’s attacking options and Bruce keen to draw a line under McCormack’s situation before the start of the new Championship season.

The Villa boss is also keen to move on Elphick, with the defender having fallen even further down the pecking order following the signing of John Terry and Christopher Samba.

Birmingham have made a number of inquiries about Elphick’s position, but Sunderland remain interested as they look to offload Kone.

Wilson is an alternative defensive option, and Black Cats officials have held discussions about the versatile centre-half and his Bournemouth team-mate, Grabban.

Wilson spent the second half of last season on loan at West Brom, and Tony Pulis is keen to complete a permanent deal for the 29-year-old.

However, Sunderland also regard the former Stoke defender as an interesting option, and are ready to step in if West Brom fail to reach an agreement.

Grabban is a 29-year-old striker who joined Bournemouth from Norwich in 2016. He spent the second half of last season on loan at Reading, and Sunderland’s interest was sparked when Bournemouth failed to award him a squad number for the new season.

“There’s plenty of movement behind the scenes, and we want to get one or two deals done very quickly as it is two weeks until the season starts,” said Grayson, who watched his side continue their pre-season preparations with a 3-2 win at League One side Bradford City on Saturday.

“Believe me, if you had my phone for a day, you’d know what it is all about. We’re speaking to players, agents and clubs. There’s positive signs, but it is about getting down to the nitty-gritty and getting deals over the line.”

One deal that is likely to be agreed this week is the signing of free agent Robbin Ruiter, with the goalkeeper having impressed at Valley Parade at the weekend.

Ruiter is looking for a new club following his release from Utrecht, and agreed to travel to Wearside for a trial that encompassed Saturday’s game. Grayson wants to see him at close quarters on the training ground, but given that Sunderland need two new goalkeepers following the departure of Jordan Pickford and Vito Mannone, a deal looks all but certain.

“I think as a manager, I’d rather judge him in training than in a game because he’s made loads of saves, which means he’s been overworked,” said Grayson. “But in terms of his play, he was composed with his feet, very calm and made good saves when he had to.

“That’s what you want, he’s got good experience. We’ll have a look at him – whether we sign him or keep him for a few days and play him on Wednesday (at Scunthorpe) and take a look, that’s a decision we’ll make. He’s done himself no harm, but you can’t be rash on a player you haven’t seen too much.”

Sunderland opened the scoring within the opening five minutes of Saturday’s game, with Josh Maja continuing his fine pre-season form as he converted Jeremain Lens’ cross.

Lens added a virtuoso second shortly after, turning neatly in the box before curling into the top corner, and Sunderland added a third goal when Billy Jones bundled home from close range after Didier Ndong’s initial shot had been saved.

Bradford pulled a goal back when former Middlesbrough defender Tony McMahon converted from the spot following a foul from Ndong, and the game finished 3-2 after Bradford trialist Jordan Gibson scored with five minutes left.

Sunderland: Ruiter; Love (Matthews 82), Browning (O’Shea 79), Kone (Djilobodji 82), Jones; Lens (Honeyman 66), Cattermole, Ndong, Khazri (Gibson 79); Maja (Asoro 48), Vaughan.