"If clubs are interested...": Rangers transfer target given clear hint on future amid Ibrox links

The 22-year-old has been linked to a departure from the Stadium of Light this month, with Sky Sports reporting that Rangers boss Danny Rohl had enquired about the player, with the German boss said to be eyeing up a double deal for Mundle and his Sunderland teammate Dan Neil.

An important member of the Sunderland starting XI that won promotion back to the top flight via the EFL Championship playoffs, the former Tottenham Hotspur academy graduate contributed to seven goals as the Black Cats ended their eight-year exile from the English Premier League last season. However, he has struggled for regular minutes in the first half of the current campaign after recovering from a troublesome hamstring injury, leading to links with Rangers and Belgian outfit Club Brugge.

However, the London-born attacker was handed his first league start of the season as Sunderland defeated Crystal Palace 2-1 on Wearside thanks to goals from Enzo Le Fee and Brian Brobbey, and head coach Regis Le Bris has now lifted the lid on his plans for Mundle in the second half of the campaign.

“If clubs are interested by our players, it's a positive point,” said Le Bris. “He has this ability with a specific profile as a winger, and I think we need to support him, challenge him sometimes, but to support him at the minute to grow in this position in the Premier League. He's stepping up in this Premier League, his first season at this level.”

His second consecutive start for the Black Cats, he also impressed in the club’s penalty shootout win over Everton in the FA Cup almost a fortnight ago, and the Sunderland boss believes that he is beginning to rediscover his confidence after suffering a recurrence of a hamstring injury during pre-season.

The Sunderland Echo now reports that the English Premier League high-fliers are keen to retain the attacker, adding that a move won’t be sanctioned unless they do ‘significant’ business of their own in the window, with French head coach Le Bris revealing his plans for him in the coming weeks.

“He started injured with his hamstrings, so he had to build his fitness level and his confidence,” said Le Bris. “He came off the bench three or four times, I think, before his first start in the FA Cup. He showed his quality as a winger, his ability to dribble, to combine with his teammates, and going behind to cross or to shoot. He has this quality. Now it's a question of potential. You have to transform it into reality. I think he did well today. We still have room for improvement, but he's a young lad with great potential, so we trust him.”

Want to stay up to date with all the latest transfer news throughout January? Sign up to The Scotsman’s daily football newsletter to get unrivalled Scottish football news and analysis - subscribe for free here.