Boss Roy Keane says he would be delighted to take Sunderland midfielder Jack Colback on loan again next season but feels it would be “a big ask”. However, having previously all but ruled Colback’s return out, the Blues boss appears to suggest that the 20-year-old coming back to Suffolk next season could be on the cards if he fails to make his mark at the Stadium of Light in pre-season.
Keane said: "I’d take Jack back, of course. He’s been voted the Player of the Year by the players and that tells you how highly we all think of him.
"I think he did very well last week against Newcastle, he did the ugly side of the game very well for us.
"The boy’s still a kid but if there was a chance of Jack coming back here next season, Brucey knows where I stand on that — we’d take him here with open arms.”
The Town manager says he talked with Black Cats manager Steve Bruce a week ago: "I spoke with Brucey last week about Jack, but I think it’s a big ask because Jack’s got a good chance of getting involved with the Sunderland squad next season, but if Brucey makes signings and Jack isn’t quite happening, who knows?
"Jack might be a late one into the season, hopefully that option is there. The good thing for us is that if Jack was to go back out on loan we’ve got a great chance because it’s worked for everyone. Jack’s enjoyed it, it’s been a plus for us and a plus for Sunderland.
"But I don’t think we’d have any news on Jack until well into pre-season when Brucey has had a good look at him when he’s back in his group, which I can understand 100%.”
Keane says he will be talking to the representatives of the in-contract players he is looking to move on over the summer soon, but refused to discuss their identities, although conceded that some of them are self-evident: "I’ll be speaking to the agents of the one or two players who are still under contract who need to go out and play some games. They can be pro-active in speaking to other clubs.
"I’m not going go through names, but three or four of them are obvious ones, I don’t think you have to be Einstein to work that one out. I’ve spoken with these players and they’re fine with it. It’s not personal, they’re good players, they’re good lads, but I need to take the club in a different direction.”
Keane, who will discuss pre-season with chief executive Simon Clegg next week, says figures have already been discussed regarding the summer’s transfer activity, although there isn’t a formal budget as such: "We’ve had a chat, I don’t think the word budget comes into it, we have to be wary of that because if we’d had a budget last season that would have gone out of the window because of the injury problems we had. And if you bring loan players in are they part of the budget?
"I’ve got players in mind that I’ve discussed with Simon and the owner and in a sense I’ve stood back a little bit and let them start negotiations with the other clubs, particularly with the players who are still under contract.”
Keane confirmed that Evans is again making money available to him: "Yes, he’s been very supportive, very supportive. But I don’t think we’ve thrown as much money at it as people think we have.”
Asked about potential targets when back in Ireland on Thursday, specifically 36-year-old Lee Carsley, who is leaving Birmingham at the end of the season, Keane said that players with similar know-how would be on his wish-list: "Yes, someone like that who has that vast experience.
"I suppose he has not played too many games over the last few years because of injury. I think these are the sort of characters you need to get out of the Championship.
"We will see who is available and, most importantly, what sort of wages they are on. I’m hoping for a busy six or seven weeks."
Meanwhile, Keane was interviewed at length by the Irish Independent during his trip back home earlier in the week to launch an Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind campaign.