Sunderland believe they can lure Will Grigg from Wigan Athletic

The League One high-flyers pulled off a surprise swoop on the DW Stadium for Max Power over the summer.

And they believe Grigg is also gettable this month as they chase an immediate return to the Championship.

The 27-year-old striker is a virtual guarantee of promotion from the third tier, with four already on his CV - two with Latics, and one each with MK Dons and Brentford.

Whether he would be tempted to drop down a division for the chance to make it five is a matter for debate.

But having been relegated to the bench in recent weeks, his desire for first-team football - as he enters his peak years - will also be a factor.

Grigg has found himself on the bench for seven of the last nine league matches, with both of those starts being curtailed by a substitution.

He started the FA Cup third-round defeat at West Brom last weekend, but that was in a side featuring seven changes from the previous league outing.

Grigg has four goals in 17 appearances for Latics this term - three of which came in the opening four matches of the campaign.

Since then his supply line has been decimated by injury, with Nick Powell, Michael Jacobs and Gavin Massey all sidelined with hamstring problems.

Joe Garner and James Vaughan have been preferred in recent weeks, with both having a return of three goals for the season.

Grigg, who’s scored 65 goals in 147 appearances during his three-and-a-half years with Latics, has 18 months remaining on his contract, and has not expressed a desire to leave.

But with Latics boss Paul Cook desperate to bolster his squad this month, a significant bid on the table for Grigg may give him a major decision to make.