Sunderland are monitoring Bulgarian International Ivelin Popov of Litex Lovech, who has already made an impact on a Premier League team by scoring in the UEFA Cup against Aston Villa on Thursday.

20-year-old midfielder Popov is considered one of the brightest prospects in Bulgarian football and has already has 5 caps for the Bulgarian National side. With the goalscoring midfielder linked with Manchester City and Blackburn Rovers last season.

However, it is understood that the Black Cats have someone watching Popov in the tie against Villa, with Manager Roy Keane eager to add the midfielder to his squad at the Stadium of Light.

Popov will have impressed any scouts from the North East club after he opened the scoring against the Midlands team in the 10th minute and caused lots of problems for the experienced defenders of the Premiership team throughout the first half.