Sunday 27 January 2019 20:06, UK
Middlesbrough captain Grant Leadbitter is set to have a medical at Sunderland on Monday ahead of a permanent transfer, according to Sky sources.
Leadbitter has agreed to take a large pay cut to rejoin his boyhood club, where he broke through from the youth ranks in 2003 and established himself in the first team over the next six years before a £2.6m move to Ipswich in 2009.
The 33-year-old has not featured for Boro since the 3-0 win over Sheffield United at the start of August and has fallen further down the Riverside pecking order following the signing of former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel.
Leadbitter will be dropping down to League One as Sunderland, currently third in the table under manager Jack Ross, push for a quickfire return to the second tier.
During his time on Wearside, Leadbitter made 123 appearances for the Black Cats and was instrumental in the club's promotion to the Premier League under Roy Keane in 2007, scoring seven goals in 44 games as the club won the Championship title.
Leadbitter has played 244 times for Middlesbrough in all competitions, most recently in the 5-0 FA Cup fifth-round win over Peterborough United.
