Sunderland are weighing up the future of a number of players this summer
Nectar Triantis looks set to return for pre-season training at Sunderland on Friday as uncertainty over his short-term future at the club continues.
Hibernian are very keen to bring the 22-year-old back after a season in which he excelled as a holding midfielder for the club, and have held talks with the Black Cats regarding a deal. According to The Daily Record, however, Triantis is undecided at this stage and is keen to see whether there is a chance for him to force his way into Régis Le Bris's plans for the upcoming campaign.
Hibernian are open to another loan for Triantis, who has two years left to run on his Sunderland contract. They are also keen to see if they can strike a permanent deal and believe they have the financial strength to pull it off, with Sunderland likely to demand a seven-figure fee and potential future incentives based on performance.
Triantis, though, is a man in demand. Bundesliga side St Pauli have been monitoring his availability while according to The Daily Record, Championship side Blackburn Rovers have also emerged as a suitor. There is also said to have been interest from the MLS this summer.
Competition for places in midfield at Sunderland will be intense next season, with Habib Diarra on the brink of joining from Ligue 1 side RC Strasbourg in a club-record deal. There could be room for a more specialist holding midfielder, however, and the club are also light currently on central defenders where Triantis played when he first arrived at the club.
Hibs begin their pre-season campaign this week with fixtures behind closed doors against Duisburg and Ajax. Sunderland's squad return for pre-season testing on Friday, before training begins in earnest next Monday.
What Hibernian have said previously about bringing Nectar Triantis back to the club
Speaking earlier this summer, Hibernian's sporting director Malky Mackay told The Scottish Football Social Club that the club were in talks with Sunderland over a fresh deal this summer.
“He's had a terrific season, he's been called up for two countries now, I believe," Mackay said.
"He's been called up for Greece and Australia. He's a Sunderland player and that at the end of the day is what he is. He has attracted a lot of attention; he's up for Player of the Year. We love him - but unfortunately he's not our player. So we'll certainly be talking to and Sunderland over the next period.
“We've talked to them, we've been talking to them, but ultimately that's not one that's within our control. He’s one of a group of people that we want to try and co-ordinate, we want to try and extend; to keep at the club and there's reasons why.
We would do both [loan or permanent transfer]," he added.
"We've got our owners and our minority owners as one at the moment. Myself and Ian Gordon were down seeing Bill Foley last week and the Black Knights group and we had a terrific three or four hours with them. Just in terms of what happened during the season, where it all went, the good and the bad and the ugly. But also then what going forward was going to look like and they're very much aligned."
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