Keane vows to reduce turnover of players

SUNDERLAND boss Roy Keane has admitted the influx of new faces into his club has to stop.

Keane, who spent £44million (€54m) on 16 players last season in an ultimately successful effort to keep his side in the Barclays Premier League, and has spent heavily once again this time around to recruit a further nine, is desperate to reduce the level of turnover.

Eight of the 11 men who started Sunday’s depressing 3-0 home defeat by Manchester City were signed by the Irishman, four of them this summer, and while a poor performance may have left the manager with food for thought, he hopes to be able to take a narrower approach to transfers from now on.

Writing in his programme notes Keane said: “There has to come a time now after this transfer window and coming up to January where our targets will be less and less in terms of the number of players we will be looking to bring to the club.

“I do appreciate – and I am the first to admit – that the amount of players we are bringing in has to be knocked on the head. We can’t keep bringing in as many so many new faces in every transfer window.

“Ideally in every window, the maximum number we will be bringing in will be two or three players. I believe that will be the case. I think we have had to spend a lot in my first two years at the club, but hopefully it’s been to get a reward for the club and hopefully, it will even itself out.”

Meanwhile Danny Higginbotham last night left Sunderland to rejoin former club Stoke City on a three-year deal for an undisclosed fee.

The 29-year-old returns to the Britannia Stadium after just one year with the Black Cats following a £3m (€3.7m) move in the summer of 2007.

The defender made 22 appearances in the north east and scored three goals and was in the starting line-up as Sunderland beat Tottenham 1-0 at White Hart Lane last month.

Stoke chief executive Tony Scholes expressed delight at re-signing the defender.

He said: “Danny is a player we know very well and we are very happy to have him back here.”

“He was a huge success here last time and he did very well at Sunderland, so to get him back here is brilliant news for us.