Sunderland had a strong season last year as they gained promotion back to the Championship after four years in League One.
However, one player who didn't quite have a standout season is Denver Hume.
After coming up through the club's academy, the 23-year-old had got himself playing fairly regularly over the recent seasons.
However, game time was hard to come by last year and after making just four league appearances in the first half of the season, the defender opted for a move to Portsmouth in January.
Reflecting upon his time with the Black Cats, Hume speaks positively but admitted his reasons for leaving the club as he told Sunderland Echo: "At Sunderland, I'd played a lot of games but probably hit a stage where I didn't know if I was coming or going. I just felt I needed that fresh start in a fresh place with fresh faces.
"This is the total other end of the country, so I don't think there's any other place that will give you that opportunity. It was important for me to push myself out of my comfort zone.
"Sunderland is a great club and I really appreciate my time there and the amount of games I was able to play. But at some stage I think you need to push forward and get out of the comfort zone, to try something new and be successful somewhere else.
"It's not like I was going from a big club to a much smaller club. So I saw the move as a good step to test myself and push for that main thing, which is obviously to gain promotion."
The Verdict:
Considering he has made nearly 100 appearance for Sunderland in all competitions at 23-years-old, it's an impressive start to his footballing career.
However, in the last year things stagnated for him at the Stadium of Light and therefore he made the right decision to leave the club.
Furthermore, with Sunderland now back in the Championship, his game time would likely have decreased even further.
It's clear that the young player has a desire to be out on the pitch and unfortunately it seemed as though he wouldn't get that opportunity regularly by staying at Sunderland.