After suffering defeat at the hands of Lincoln City in the League One play-offs earlier this year, Sunderland will be hoping to learn from the mistakes that they made last season during the current campaign.
Black Cats manager Lee Johnson opted to respond to his side's setback by launching a complete overhaul of his squad.
As well as parting ways with a host of players, the 40-year-old has managed to draft in some fresh faces this summer.
Alex Pritchard, Corry Evans, Nathan Broadhead, Frederik Alves, Callum Doyle and Dennis Cirkin will all be determined to make a positive impression at the Stadium of Light in the coming months after sealing moves to Sunderland.
Seemingly not content with these aforementioned arrivals, Johnson may now be about to bolster his defensive options by swooping for one of Leeds United's prospects.
According to Football Insider, Sunderland are closing in on sealing a deal for Whites full-back Niall Huggins.
It is understood that the Black Cats are currently in advanced talks with Leeds over a move for the Wales Under-21 international who is believed to be surplus to requirements at Elland Road.
The two clubs are reportedly expected to reach an agreement over a six-figure fee.
Huggins, whose current deal at Leeds is set to expire in 2023, struggled to make any inroads on Marcelo Bielsa's starting eleven last season as he was limited to one senior appearance.
Used predominantly at youth level by the Whites, the defender featured on 17 occasions in the Premier League 2 Division 2 as his side achieved promotion in May.
GIVEMESPORT's Joshua Cole says...
Providing that Sunderland are able to finalise this deal, it could turn out to be a shrewd move by Johnson as Huggins clearly possesses the potential to become a good player.
The Black Cats may benefit from the 20-year-old's versatility this season as he has shown at youth level that he is capable of playing on the left as well as the right-hand side of defence.
Considering that Sunderland are no longer able to call upon the services of Denver Hume, Callum McFadzean and Conor McLaughlin, they are relatively short of options at full-back and thus it could be a wise decision to draft in Huggins.
Whereas it may take Huggins some time to adapt to life in League One due to the fact that he has never featured at this level during his career, he could potentially become a key player for the Black Cats in the not too distant future.
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