Chris Coleman has revealed that Oli McBurnie was a player Sunderland took a look at during the January transfer window, but brushed off discussing the club’s failure to sign the striker in detail.

McBurnie’s opportunities with Swansea City in the Premier League were looking limited ahead of the second-half of the season, with a loan move in January always going to happen.

Coleman has confirmed that Sunderland looked at bringing the 21-year-old to the Stadium of Light, but instead he moved to Oakwell, where he has linked up with one of Sunderland’s relegation rivals, Barnsley.

Discussing McBurnie to the Chronicle Live, Coleman refused to go into too much detail on Sunderland’s interest, he said: “Oli is a good player, but there’s quite a few players we were looking at in January.

“He’s not our problem now. We have the players we have."

Since McBurnie’s move to Barnsley, the striker has impressed, with the youngster amongst the goals and claiming the Championship Player of the Month award for February.

The 21-year-old has featured in six games for the Tykes since his arrival at Oakwell, scoring five goals for his new side, whilst the player Sunderland brought in to spearhead their attack, Ashley Fletcher, is yet to get off the mark.

The Verdict  

McBurnie has been a great addition to Barnsley’s squad, with his goals giving the Tykes a fighting chance in their fight for survival in the Championship.

Coleman’s side are lacking a goalscorer heading into the run-in having lost Lewis Grabban in January, and McBurnie would’ve been the perfect addition at the Stadium of Light.

However, as Coleman says, McBurnie isn’t Sunderland’s problem, and the Championship’s bottom club must now move on.

Sunderland fans… Let us know your thoughts!