Sunderland risk losing England youth star Tom Watson with Rangers and several Premier League clubs monitoring his contract situation.
The forward made his senior debut at home to Huddersfield in the Championship shortly after his 17th birthday in April, and he has become a regular for England Under-17s.
However, he is yet to sign a professional contract at Sunderland and is now in the final year of his current deal. Talks are said to have been slow and have frustrated the player and his camp.
The situation has alerted a host of top-flight clubs.