Sunderland boss Paolo di Canio says transfer plans are on hold as they battle against the drop.

He insists all transfer dealings are on hold until the Wearsiders have guaranteed their place in the top flight.

Di Canio said: "I don't talk about players who are not in the team, never mind ones who are not at the club.

"I have not thought about transfers yet - absolutely nothing. Everything can change. You can feel safe and then - boom - you can be hit like a hammer.

"We have to make sure we are safe first. I cannot think about transfers until then.

"Even if we win against Stoke on Monday night and that makes us nearly safe, I still will not think about transfers.

"I want to be sure of safety first. Normally you would start to think about transfers maybe in February but, that is not the case for us."