Bruce hopes for Chamakh talks

24 July 2009 08:20
Sunderland boss Steve Bruce is hoping the club will hold talks over a deal for Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh over the weekend. Bruce is eager to improve his attacking options and has already missed out on Peter Crouch after the Portsmouth forward turned down a move to the Stadium of Light. Tottenham's Darren Bent is also a target for Bruce, while the in-demand Chamakh is another player to have caught the Black Cats manager's eye. Chamakh has suggested he would be keen on joining Sunderland and Bruce is hoping progress can be made by chairman Niall Quinn in the coming days. "Chamakh is a player I've liked for a long, long time," said Bruce in The Guardian. "We have shown an interest and we'll see what develops with that. He is one of a few we are looking at and we will decide soon. "Niall got back on Thursday and there will be high-level talks going on over the weekend, not just about him, but regarding other targets as well. "We've still got one or two irons in the fire like we've had for weeks. We're still trying and we're close, in particular, to one deal being done over the next couple of days. "But, after what has happened this week with Peter Crouch, I don't want to say too much. "That was a massive disappointment and you can never say 'yes', the deal is done, until everything has actually been done."

Source: SKY_Sports