'Ross Stewart is 100% committed to Sunderland,' says Kristjaan Speakman

Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman has asked Sunderland supporters to trust the club to tie down Ross Stewart to a new deal.
'Ross Stewart is 100% committed to Sunderland,' says Kristjaan Speakman
'Ross Stewart is 100% committed to Sunderland,' says Kristjaan Speakman /

Sporting director Kristjaan Speakman says Ross Stewart is ‘100% committed to Sunderland’ and his performances prove it.

Stewart has just entered the final 18 months of he deal with Sunderland, and negotiations to extend it have dragged on with no resolution yet in sight.

However, speaking to the club’s official YouTube channel, Speakman has asked supporters to trust them to get the deal done.

“Firstly it's important to say we're really dedicated and been proactive trying to get Ross to sign a new contract.

“Everyone here is geared up to make that happen and we feel that's the right outcome. Certainly, if you look on the pitch his performances and desire to get back from injury show he's 100% committed to Sunderland.

“So, at the present time, that's where the negotiations sit. I don't think that should be anything that should worry supporters.

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“I'd like to think that our track record since we've been at the club has been something that the fans can trust.

“At the present time we've got talented players who are contracted for a substantial period of time which fully protects the club.

“There are one or two players who are coming to the end of their natural contract this summer, and they've got certain clauses in there which mean they roll over into the next year.

“So, from our perspective, we feel really comfortable with the position but we also want to try and make sure that when we've got high profile players like Ross that we get them tied down for the appropriate amount of time.”


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Michael Graham
MICHAEL GRAHAM

Michael Graham is a professional sports writer with more than ten years of industry experience. After pursuing football writing by helping establish the Roker Report Sunderland AFC fansite, Michael moved to Planet Sport to cover football.  Michael has since worked on many of the sports sites within the Planet Sport network, including Football365, TEAMtalk and Planet Football before leaving to join 90min. As well as football, Michael is an accomplished tennis writer and has been regularly featured on Tennishead, TennisBuzz and Tennis365. It is football that is his first love, though, with Sunderland AFC his particular passion.  Contact: michael@buzzpublishing.co.uk