Sunderland are set to fight it out with both West Ham and Swansea in order to land young full back Marcus Alonso.
The 23 year old, who made 20 appearances for Sunderland while on loan last season, has attracted the interest of several clubs according to TalkSport.
The defender began his career at Real Madrid where he made one senior appearance before joining Bolton Wanderers. He then joined Fiorentina in 2013 before spending 5 months on loan at Sunderland in the second half of last season.
Alonso had an excellent season with Sunderland where he established himself as first choice left back almost immediately after joining the club on loan.
After playing an important part in keeping The Black Cats in The Premier League most assumed that the Spanish defender would be a priority for the club to sign permanently.
But no deal has yet materialised.
The Daily Mail has since stated that Modibo Diakite may be offered to Fiorentina as part of a swap deal to ensure they land Alonso. The cash plus player deal would benefit both player and club as Diakite is seemingly out of favour with Poyet and unlikely to see regular game time.
This has left the North East side dangerously short at left back. Their only other established player in that position, Andrea Dossena, left the club following the expiry of his contract at the end of the season. Meanwhile Jack Colback, who has played in defence numerous times has also left the club for local rivals Newcastle United.
Defence is obviously a priority for Gus Poyet, explaining why The Telegraph has also reported that he will be looking to make an increased offer for Swansea centre back Ashley Williams in the coming days.
