Sunderland's summer transfer mission is one that will surely get fans very excited ahead of the new season.

It's going to be Lee Johnson's first pre-season in charge at the Stadium Of Light and with Kyril Louis-Dreyfus also keen to make a big splash this summer, it could be a busy few weeks and months for the club.

Kristjaan Speakman has come in as the club's sporting director and will be looking to bring in players who will promise to be a big hit on the pitch, while also proving to be shrewd additions from  a business point of view.

However before you plump for your betfred sign up offer it's worth noting that such transfer plans are unlikely to be carried out without a setback or two.

Sunderland are yet to finalise any deals and so it's too early to judge the incoming transfer business; but with plenty of players leaving Wearside in recents weeks it means that plenty will be assessing those decisions with a critical eye.

A number of players have left the club since the end of the season but one of the most eye-catching was Max Power.

Since moving to the club three years ago the midfielder has made 136 appearances for the club and has regularly been named as Sunderland skipper with previous club captain Grant Leadbitter coming in and out of the team.

After leaving the club the 27-year-old has completed a permanent move back to his former club Wigan Athletic where he's expected to become a key player as the Latics look to mount a promotion push next term.

While Sunderland will always back their decision to offload Power this summer, there's no doubting that his exit is a big gamble.

The midfielder was one of the few genuine leaders in Lee Johnson's side last term and so his departure is bound to leave a big hole both on and off the pitch.

I'm adamant that Johnson will be looking to bring in several leaders this summer - after all, if they don't then the Black Cats are going to find it incredibly tough to last the pace in the League One promotion race.

But with Power moving to a likely promotion rival then there's a possibility that Sunderland could end up with egg on their faces at the end of next season if the midfielder has the sort of impact on Wigan Athletic that we know he's capable of.

Let's just hope that for the sake of Sunderland's supporters there is a suitable replacement on the way into the club over the next couple of weeks.