Gradel’s ‘no’ and Maja op hasten need for a striker

Sunderland’s need for reinforcements in attack has heightened after Josh Maja was ruled out for a month.

But Max Gradel won’t be arriving on Wearside.

Simon Grayson has revealed that th Black Cats had agreed a deal with Bournemouth to take Gradel on loan, but the forward has instead opted to head to French side Toulouse.

The Sunderland boss had earmarked Gradel as a target after taking charge in the summer but the club must move onto other targets, with Aston Villa striker Ross McCormack the top priority on loan.

Gradel’s move to Toulouse was confirmed midway through last night’s 1-1 draw at Sheffield Wednesday. It comes as promising 18-yearold striker Maja has been ruled out for a month after undergoing knee surgery.

Grayson, asked about Gradel, said: “We spoke to Max but he eventually decided to go to France.

“We had agreed something with Bournemouth and he is a good player that I wanted to bring to the club – it showed you where we are with the players we are looking at.

“That would have been a big signing for us. But he just felt that his family wanted to go back to France. That was disappointing, but it is part and parcel of football.”

Maja had caught the eye with four goals in pre-season but he hasn’t featured since the friendly win at Bradford because of injury.

Grayson added: “Josh has had an operation on his knee. He will probably be out for a month – they just found a bit of a problem with his knee and we had to operate.”

The transfer window closes on August 31 and Grayson again reiterated his stance that it should close before the season kicks off.

He said: “Hopefully it comes in sooner rather than later.”