Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn is handing manager Roy Keane a £20 million January warchest to buy their way to Premiership safety.
With the Black Cats in the bottom three, boss Keane emerged from talks with Quinn insisting he is happy with the backing promised.
He said: "I've spoken to Niall and I'm aware of what's available. We have our targets and want to get the ball rolling soon."
Manchester United's Jonny Evans, Portsmouth's Matt Taylor and Bolton's Stelios Giannakopoulos top Keane's shopping list, says The Sun.