Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn says the club is excited about the prospect of new manager Steve Bruce uncovering more rough diamonds in the global transfer market.

Quinn said: "His experience does count for a lot in this appointment, there's no doubt about that.

"He has taken many a rough diamond and polished them up beautifully, and the clubs he has been with have benefited.

"We hope he can do that for us. The good thing he feels right now is he has been told, 'We trust you, your record has been very good on that. If the deal is smart and it's intelligent, we will do it'.

"But he also knows we have some very good players at the football club and he has given them a big thumbs-up because individually, we have some great players, there's no doubt about that.

"I think we will get the best of both worlds. He will gel what we have, we will see a different team spirit. I hope to see a togetherness next year, all the things a good Sunderland team needs.

"If we can get it right in the transfer market as well, then we have a real chance."