Sunderland have today offered Lamine Kone a brand new deal. The news has come in the wake of a reported £18-million bid from Everton for the strong defender.

Kone, who arrived at Sunderland in January from Lorient for £5-million, is a key part of David Moyes’ plans and a new deal for key players has been made a priority at Sunderland this summer. Patrick Van Aanholt, Jermain Defoe and Vito Mannone have all signed new deals this summer, whilst Jan Kirchhoff has been in negotiations with the club for a few weeks now, with a deal nearing conclusion.

Now the Black Cats have turned their attention to Kone, who is attracting big interest following a series of superb displays since arriving in England. Kone originally turned down Sunderland in January, disappointed with the offer made by the club, however, after tough negotiations, Kone signed on for four years on Wearside.

The new negotiations will be far from straightforward. Despite Kone loving his time so far at Sunderland, his agent drives a hard bargain, and with several clubs keeping tabs on the Ivorian, the ball is very much in Kone’s court with the club reportedly offering the defender £70,000 per week.