The latest transfer talk as Sunderland look to boost their squad ahead of their return to the Premier League.
Sunderland transfer target Max Johnston has delivered a major hint on his future after several clubs were linked with the Sturm Graz defender.
Bundesliga trio Augsburg, Mainz and Union Berlin have been named as interested parties along with Ligue 1 sides Lens, Toulouse and Reims. However, the most surprising interest is said to come from newly crowned Serie A champions Napoli, who have already enjoyed successful from adding Scottish players to their ranks after Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour impressed in their recent title win.
With interest now ramping up and speculation over his future increasing, Johnston has spoken out over him aims for the coming years as he revealed what Sturm told him when he joined them from Motherwell during the summer of 2023.
He told TransferMarkt: “I want to play at the highest level that I can get to. I want to keep pushing and I want to keep moving forward. Sturm told me when I joined that their plan was to develop me, so I can move onto the next step. Sturm have enjoyed great success at selling players on, so I knew it would be a great club for me.”
Serie A inspiration
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Johnston was not the first Scot to swap life in the Premiership for a move abroad as he followed in the footsteps of current Brentford full-back Aaron Hickey, Josh Doig and Liam Henderson, who have spent time with the likes of Bologna, Hellas Verona, Sassuolo and Empoli in recent seasons.
It was Hickey’s progress in Serie A that prompted Johnston to consider a move on to the continent - and the defender believes he has benefitted from his time in Austria as he awaits news on the next step in his career.
He said: “When I first decided to go abroad, I looked at the likes of Aaron and how successful he was at Bologna. He’s also a full back and he was excellent at Bologna before moving to the Premier League. Several Scottish boys have thrived abroad, especially in Italy and that definitely pushed me. I thought well there must be something abroad that looks good for young Scottish players, so I definitely wanted to try it. I feel as though I've come on massively to be fair and that was the whole point of me going over to Austria.
“I wanted to learn more and I wanted to experience different things and I feel as though I'm doing that every week. Moving away from home at 19 is difficult. A lot of people don't see that. They see the football side and they think everything's going well but it's difficult. I’ve developed massively in Austria and grown as a player and person.”
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