Roy Keane wasn’t joking when, at the end of last season, he told reporters that he needed a large influx of players to ensure his team continued to survive in the Premier League. The Irishman seems to be set on signing an entirely new team at the moment, with a new face coming in every other day at the Stadium of Light. This latest purchase might split opinion among the Wearside faithful.

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The Independent report that Sunderland are close to the signature of former Liverpool striker El Hadji Diouf for around £3.5 million. It was clear that the forward was going to leave Bolton at the end of last season, although it had been thought that he’d move abroad to continue his career, not further north instead!

Sunderland are today expected to announce the signing of El Hadji Diouf from Bolton Wanderers for a fee that is thought to be around £3.5m. With Pascal Chimbonda having followed Teemu Tainio from Tottenham to Sunderland, Diouf, 27, will become Roy Keane’s third signing in a week and there is the prospect of more to follow.

Chimbonda completed his transfer on Saturday and his defensive colleague at Spurs, Younes Kaboul, may yet arrive on Wearside despite the intervention of Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp last Thursday.

What to make of Diouf? On his day, he’s world-beater, and certainly played a significant role in ensuring that Bolton are still a Premier League team. However, Keane will have to work hard to keep the wide player focused on the task in hand, while the Senegal international is prone to picking up plenty of yellow cards. A good signing or a mediocre one?

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