This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Regular Punter’ series, where we gather original opinions from select, passionate fans of the clubs concerned on matters surrounding their team and share them with a wider audience…

Football League World's Sunderland fan pundit Charlie Hodgson has issued his verdict on the North East club's reported interest in Baku Sabah defender Bahlul Mustafazade. 

Reports from Azerbaijani website azerisport.com have suggested that manager Phil Parkinson is keen on Mustafazade and that the Black Cats are in preliminary talks to sign the 22-year-old in January.

The North East club may face some competition for the defender as it has been reported that sides from the Bundesliga, the Premier League, and the Championship are also interested.

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Sabah president Magsud Adygezalov told azerisport.com that they had not received any official proposals but that they would consider any offers that interested them.

Hodgson admitted his knowledge on the 22-year-old was limited but suggested adding him in January could be a smart move.

He explained: "I don’t really know much about Bahlul Mustafazade but he appears to have been courted by European and Championship clubs, so he seems highly rated.

"However, I hadn’t heard of him before he was linked with us.

"He wouldn’t be a bad of signing in the grand scheme of things. We could lose three centre-backs in the next two transfer windows due to contracts expiring, so he can help with squad depth if anything.

"At the young age of 22, he can hopefully grow with the club or can be offloaded for a profit in the future, especially if we can get him for a cheap price."

Sunderland face a crunch game against Scunthorpe in the EFL Trophy tomorrow, knowing that they have to win to progress to the knock-out stages of the competition.