Sunderland legend Kevin Phillips has heaped praise on Sunderland’s recruitment team for their work in the summer transfer and believes Leon Dajaku will prove to be another quality addition.

The Black Cats had already had a strong transfer window over the summer with the likes of Alex Pritchard, Niall Huggins, Dennis Cirkin, Corry Evans, Callum Doyle, Frederik Alves and Nathan Broadhead all arriving at the Stadium of Light.

However, they made the decision to add Dajaku to their squad as well on the final day of the transfer with him arriving on a season-long loan deal from Bundesliga outfit union Berlin.

The forward will provide plenty more competition for places in the final third with Sunderland having already managed to get off to a good start to the campaign in front of goal. That comes with Lee Johnson’s side having scored eight goals in their opening five matches.

Speaking to Football Insider, Phillips lauded the efforts of the Black Cats’ recruitment team this summer and suggested that Dajaku is a player that should make a major impact given that he has been entrusted with the number seven shirt.

He said: “You are not at Bayern Munich unless you have got some serious ability.

“It will of course be a big jump coming to Sunderland. But, receiving the number seven shirt will have given the lad a big confidence boost. It will give him a huge lift.

“I am excited to see what he brings to the side. The scouting this season has been brilliant. The players they have brought in have done really well so far.

“I cannot judge the lad until I’ve seen him but I would certainly back the judgement of the recruitment department. The players that have come in have looked great. I’m excited to see more of them.”

The verdict

Dajaku is a player that not too much will be known about until he gets into the side and shows what he can do at the Stadium of Light.

However, he is certainly a player that arrives with a lot of pedigree having come through the youth ranks of Bayern Munich.

This season will be a massive chance for him to really put his name on the map and demonstrate to Union Berlin that he should be being considered to feature for them in the German top-flight over the next few years.

Sunderland appear to have gone down a route of bringing young players into the club this summer who are both talented and hungry to prove their worth.

That is an approach that seems to be paying off in the opening weeks of the campaign and Lee Johnson is an ideal manager to have in place if that is your strategy.

Phillips is right that the Black Cats have done very well this summer with their talent identification and if Dajaku can make as good an impression as some of their other additions then it will have been an excellent signing to have made.