Sunderland defender Tom Flanagan is edging closer to a permanent departure from the Stadium of Light on transfer deadline day, according to Football Insider.

The 30-year-old is set to switch to fellow League One side Shrewsbury Town on a permanent basis with his contract at the Black Cats set to expire at the end of the season.

It was rumoured earlier in the evening that both Flanagan and team-mate Lynden Gooch were being eyed up by Steve Cotterill's side for late swoops.

And he appears to have gotten his hands on at least one of those with the centre-back closing in on a move to Shropshire.

Flanagan has appeared 25 times for Sunderland this season in League One but has been allowed to seek a departure, with Fulham's Terence Kongolo in-line to replace him.

The eight-cap Northern Ireland international last featured for the Wearsiders in a 1-0 victory over Portsmouth last week before being dropped for the humiliating 6-0 drubbing by Bolton Wanderers.

The Verdict

Flanagan is a very experienced player at League One level and Shrewsbury are getting a solid, dependable player.

Despite having that experience though, he probably would have rarely featured for Sunderland in the second half of the season despite no-one knowing who the new manager will be.

There's a certain ambition at the Stadium of Light and Flanagan is probably not at the standard to where they want to be in a few months time in the Championship.

For a club like Shrewsbury though it's a solid addition and one that could see them shore up a little bit at the back.