Sunderland have confirmed the appointment of Roberto De Fanti as the club's director of football.
He will be joined by new chief scout Valentino Angeloni, who replaced the departed Bryan 'Pop' Robson, under a restructuring of the club's player recruitment department.
De Fanti and former Inter Milan head of scouting Angeloni have previously worked together at Udinese and Inter.
Sunderland have been working hard on rebuilding the squad manager Paolo Di Canio inherited from predecessor Martin O'Neill with Maritimo defender Valentin Roberge, Basle midfielder Cabral and Lazio's Modibo Diakite set to join the club in July.
Chief executive Margaret Byrne said: "Roberto and Valentino bring with them a wealth of experience, knowledge and football contacts from across Europe and indeed the world and we are delighted to welcome them to Sunderland.
"The recruitment of players is of course key for any football club and Roberto and Valentino will work closely with the head coach and the board to identify targets as we look to strengthen our squad for next season and beyond.
"I would also like to extend our thanks to the president of Inter Milan, Massimo Moratti, who graciously agreed to allow Valentino to make the move to Sunderland."
Source: PA
