Sunderland have been handed a boost with the news that midfielder George Honeyman is set to stay at the club.

The midfielder has been in fine form this season down in League One and has attracted admiring glances from the Championship, but in a report by the Shields Gazette, Black Cats chairman Stuart Donald has confirmed Honeyman has had a years contract extension activated due to games played.

"George - automatically got another year due to games played," said Donald.

"I expect we will give the fans an update on the other youngsters in the next 7 days or so."

The update will be a big boost for Sunderland given the form of Honeyman this term as they look to bounce back from League One at the first attempt, and they have made an excellent start to doing just that, sitting just one point off second with two games in hand.

Their game with Accrington today was abandoned midway through due to bad weather, meaning they will have the chance to take three points the next time the two teams meet.

Signing up the likes of Honeyman to new deals and continuing to try and tie down the likes of Josh Maja is big on the agenda for the Black Cats this term as they try and keep Championship hands off some of their star men.

The Verdict

Good news this for Sunderland. Honeyman has been a key man for Jack Ross' outfit this term and keeping hold of him can only be a positive.

Sunderland should be there or thereabouts come the end of the season, with the form of Honeyman likely to be key in any success they do have.

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