Sunderland: One player the Black Cats could sign in January

Name: Jan Kirchhoff

Position: Defender

Club: Bayern Munich

Centre-half Jan Kirchhoff (Far left) has made just seven league appearances for Bayern Munich since joining in January 2013.

Currently four points adrift of safety in 19th place; Sunderland face a huge uphill battle to preserve their Premier League status for a tenth successive season, although a new defender during the January transfer could well go along way in their fight for survival come May.

The Black Cats are reportedly interested in signing Germany defender Jan Kirchhoff, who has found himself out-of-favour at the Bundesliga champions this campaign.

The 25-year-old, who is a former Germany Under-21 international, has made just two first-team appearances for Pep Guardiola’s side so far this season.

Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce is keen to bolster his defensive options this month having conceded 39 goals from their opening 20 fixtures, more than any other club in the English top-flight.

Despite having already agreed a £5m fee for Lorient centre-half Lamine Kone last week; manager Allardyce may well fancy a defensive double signing in the forthcoming weeks, with the towering 6ft 5in Kirchhoff high on his wish list.

He signed for Munich on a free transfer from Mainz back in 2013, but he has made only seven appearances for them in the German top division since, even spending the conclusion of last season on loan at Schalke.