New Sunderland boss Jack Ross insists he will give the current players in the squad a chance to impress despite the major changes that are expected at the Stadium of Light.

The former St. Mirren boss was appointed by new owner Stewart Donald and will be expected to win promotion back to the Championship at the first time of asking.

However, he will have to do that after making major changes, with several new additions and departures expected in the coming weeks.

Yet, Ross was quoted by the Northern Echo as saying that he is open-minded regarding the current squad.

"We understand as a club that we have assets because there are good players here. They’ve had a couple of difficult seasons but there are still good individual players who will naturally be of interest to other clubs.

"Then those players have to assess if that’s better for them moving forward than being part of this progression at Sunderland.

"I haven’t really differentiated between different problems at this stage and different players, they all fall under the same bracket."

The Verdict

These are sensible comments from Ross as he clearly doesn't know what will happen with all of the players in the coming months.

Players respond differently under new managers and Ross could get the best out of some players who have struggled over the years.

Ultimately though, Ross needs to make sure he has a squad ready for the new season as promotion is a must.

Thoughts, Sunderland fans? Let us know in the comments below.