Aiden McGeady is one of four senior Sunderland players who will depart the club this summer when their contracts expire, according to a Patreon report from Alan Nixon.
The former Republic of Ireland international winger has spent five years at the Black Cats having signed in the summer of 2017, playing 130 times for the club and scoring 29 goals, with part of that tenure at the Wearsiders spent in exile away from the squad under the management of Phil Parkinson.
Also heading out of the exit door at the Stadium of Light is Jordan Willis.
The defender has really struggled with injuries since his arrival in 2019 from Coventry City, having been restricted to just 50 League One outings for the club and he failed to play in the 2021-22 campaign at all thanks to numerous setbacks.
Fellow centre-back Arbenit Xhemajli will also depart after spending two years with the Black Cats.
The Kosovo international featured just once in all competitions in his debut season before suffering a serious knee injury and played just four times in the 2021-22 season.
29-year-old goalkeeper Lee Burge will also leave this summer when his contract comes to an end, with the stopper missing part of the season due to a heart problem.
Burge started the first three league matches of the previous season but was soon usurped by Ron-Thorben Hoffmann, with the 5-1 EFL Cup defeat to Arsenal in December being his last appearance for the club.
The Verdict
It's hard to argue with any of the decisions made when it comes to the releases.
For all his goal contributions since returning to the fold under Lee Johnson, McGeady spent much of the 2021-22 season injured and never got an appearance under Alex Neil, and at the age of 36 it made sense to part ways.
Xhemajli was another player who was hamstrung by injuries and is probably not good enough for the step up to the Championship - likewise Burge.
Willis though may be a tough one to swallow considering he did look talented, but his reoccurring knee injury set him back a long time and unfortunately, sometimes in football brutal decisions have to be made and Sunderland have made one by releasing him.