Sunderland’s efforts to sign a new winger over the summer transfer window turned into something of a farce, and while they did eventually sign Malick Fofana – despite the best efforts of Crystal Palace – it hasn’t had the transformative effect that they might have hoped.

The Black Cats’ attack is still among the Premier League’s least threatening and that problem, combined with diminishing returns in defence and midfield, suggests a difficult season ahead. There is already mounting pressure on head coach Régis Le Bris in spite of his immense successes at the Stadium of Light. Changes clearly need to be made.

Signing another attacking player in January to provide some of the missing goal threat would be one of the more obvious ways in which the club could attempt to ease the tension and put some points on the board – and fresh reports suggest that they could turn to one of the summer targets they missed out on in order to get what they need.

Sunderland set to make second attempt to sign Geny Catamo – reports

According to Portuguese newspaper A Bola – whose print story has been summarised in English by Sport Witness – Sunderland are preparing to make a second attempt to sign winger Geny Catamo, who was perhaps the forward they put the most effort into acquiring over the course of the summer before negotiations collapsed.

The proposed deal fell apart due to the price, with Sunderland unwilling to meet Sporting’s demand of €40m (£33m). The Black Cats came close with a package worth a similar amount, but the Portuguese side held firm and a transfer never took place.

The winger they did eventually sign, Malick Fofana, arrived for a transfer fee of around £25m which was more in line with Sunderland’s budget, but the young Belgium international hasn’t been able to contribute much so far. Fofana has just one goal in 10 appearances for his new club and has cut a frustrating figure in the final third. Catamo, meanwhile, has three goals and four assists in 15 games since the summer.

According to A Bola, Sunderland’s assistant manager, José Fonte, is the driving force behind the interest in Catamo, and should Le Bris lose and his team ultimately lose their jobs then it’s possible that they will turn their attention towards other targets – but if they stay on Wearside, then a renewed bid for the Mozambique international is certainly a credible concept.

Apparently Sporting’s asking price hasn’t changed, which could be a stumbling block, but Sunderland could frankly be more desperate to do a deal this time around. It’s also reported that Sporting are attempting to extend Catamo’s contract by an extra two years until 2031 – should they succeed, then a deal is definitely off the table.

In short, there are a lot of barriers to a deal, and no guarantee that the people who most want it will be in a position to push it through come January. It’s too early to call this deal a likelihood. If it does happen, however, would it be the kind of move which could save Sunderland’s season?

Why Catamo might not solve all of Sunderland’s problems

Catamo’s direct playing style has won him plenty of admirers, especially in Lisbon, and his flair and willingness to get the ball down and take defenders on time and again has been responsible for creating plenty of chances and quick counter-attacks for his team – it isn’t hard to work out why some at the Stadium of Light might be keen.

With his pace and trickery, the 25-year-old is a player who gets the ball into dangerous areas with regularity. The problem is that he isn’t particularly productive in his own right. He’s a player who creates positions for others to thrive, but isn’t a regular scorer himself.

Catamo scored eight goals and created three more in the space of 44 appearances last season, and that was his most productive yet. It’s worth wondering whether Sunderland’s lack of a truly reliable goalscorer – Brian Brobbey comes close to matching that description but has his ups and downs in front of goal – means that Catamo could be wasted on Wearside.

There is some evidence that he would score far more frequently if he played in a narrower role, at least. At Sporting he tends to stick to the touchline like glue and seldom gets into shooting positions as a result, but his finishing is very respectable when he does – his six league goals last year came from just 3.37xG’s worth of chances. That’s an outlier in his career, but not to such a great extent that there’s not a reasonable possibility that he could become a 10-plus goal a season player if used in a different manner.

Still, if what Sunderland need is goals first and foremost, then Catamo might not be the obvious candidate for the job. He’s a very entertaining player who can give slower defences conniptions, but right now, it’s not certain that he’s the answer to the Black Cats’ increasingly panicked prayers.