Premier League trio Sheffield United, Brighton, and Crystal Palace are interested in making a potential summer move for Wolves defender Dion Sanderson, with Bristol City and Huddersfield Town also alerted to his potential situation, per Daily Mail.

Sanderson is on loan with Sunderland in League One from Wolves, and the 21-year-old has been enjoying an impressive spell with the Black Cats under Lee Johnson. He scored his first league goal for the club on Saturday in the win against Rochdale. Overall, he has made 18 League One appearances (Sofascore) so far and has been labelled as one of the best loan signings in their history by former player Stephen Elliot.

It is thought that Sanderson’s form has started to attract the attention of Palace, Brighton, and Sheffield United. Wolves are potentially set to cash in on him in the summer as he heads into the final year of his current deal, per Daily Mail. Both Bristol City and Huddersfield are also thought to be monitoring his situation as well.

Sunderland are also unsurprisingly interested in keeping hold of the defender, and it is believed the 21-year-old is open to a return to the Stadium of Light as long as the club win promotion back to the Championship under Johnson this term, per Daily Mail.

The verdict

Keeping hold of Sanderson would be massive for the Black Cats and this latest report gives hope that may still be a possibility in the summer despite the growing interest from elsewhere. The 21-year-old has flourished for Sunderland and it is hard to think of a more important player to them at the moment than the defender, so he could play a major in whether or not they go up this term.

It seems the North East club hold an advantage over the other sides, with the report suggesting he is open to signing permanently.

Wolves have a strong squad in terms of their defensive options and despite Sanderson having plenty of potential, they might not be able to offer him the regular first-team minutes he deserves. Therefore, it would be better for them to cash in on him while his stock is high in the summer.

Sanderson might well have his pick of clubs in the summer. The defender will be able to choose between potentially moving to the Premier League and hoping he can be a regular starter at that level, or whether he should move up to the Championship and be almost guaranteed a place in the starting line-up.