Sunderland signed Bradley Dack on a free transfer last summer, though it’s been far from a positive season for the 27-year-old.
Dack is currently sidelined but pushing for a return after the international break as Sunderland vie to end a seven-game winless streak.
Mike Dodds finally managed to halt Sunderland’s losing streak last time out, drawing 0-0 with QPR in the Championship.
The Black Cats remain in 12th place of the table and a returning Dack could be a boost for Dodds, who is also without the likes of Jack Clarke and Patrick Roberts in attack.
Bradley Dack at Sunderland
Dack signed a one-year deal with Sunderland last summer following his release from Blackburn Rovers.
He reunited with his former Blackburn boss Tony Mowbray at the Stadium of Light and it looked like a signing that had the potential to be shrewd.
But so far this season, Dack has featured just 12 times in the Championship, scoring once and assisting once.
Dack hasn’t featured now since December, as injury continues to take a hold on the midfielder’s recent career.
How much does Bradley Dack earn at Sunderland
Many might be surprised to find out that Dack is Sunderland’s highest-earning player, according to Salary Sport.
Sunderland run a pretty tight ship in terms of finances compared to their Championship rivals, but they splashed out on Dack last summer.
He apparently pulls in £18,000-a-week on Wearside; more than Sunderland’s second-highest earner Dan Ballard on £17,000-a-week.
Having signed on a one-year deal, Dack then will reportedly earn £936,000 from the club; that’s £78,000 per appearance in the Championship this season, and little over £1983 per minute played.
Dack was a gamble that’s not paid off
For Sunderland, the above numbers certainly don’t make for good reading.
Whilst his salary should be taken with a pinch of salt, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that the Black Cats spent well on Dack, who’ll have no doubt had a good reference from Mowbray at the time.
And he deserves that reference; under Mowbray at Blackburn, Dack was one of the best no.10s in the Football League being able to score and create goals.
Whilst injury took the wind out of his sails, he managed to return to fitness last season, racking up 27 Championship appearances for Rovers.
So there was definitely reason to believe that Dack could have flourished this time round having found fitness and also playing under Mowbray once again.
But that’s not been the case, and with his contract out in the summer, Dack will surely become a free agent once again.