• ‘We won’t be able to spend to get out of trouble’, says Martin Bain • Bain also confirms owner Ellis Short is open to offers for the club

Martin Bain, the Sunderland chief executive, has warned that the Premier League’s bottom-placed club will not be able to spend their way to safety in January and made it plain that Ellis Short, the owner, is open to a potential takeover.

Bain is attempting to reduce a £140m debt and £73m wage bill. Asked how much money David Moyes would be handed next month, his reply was stark. “Limited. I could probably say very limited with regards to the January transfer window. We’re rebuilding and restructuring, it’s going to take a while and we’re not going to be able to spend to get out of trouble.”

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This dictates that Moyes, Sunderland’s seventh manager in just over five years, cannot expect anything approaching the £15m budget that his predecessor, Sam Allardyce, spent last January. Allardyce spent that cash on Lamine Koné, Jan Kirchhoff and Wahbi Khazri, who all played key roles in the club’s escape from relegation, but this season Khazri has lost form while Kirchhoff has struggled with injuries.

With Moyes reluctant to offload his two most saleable assets, the goalkeeper Jordan Pickford and Koné – understood to have a £25m release clause in his contract – in order to fund purchases, Sunderland’s survival chances will be heavily dependent on their manager’s coaching skills.

It signals the end of a series of transfer‑market quick-fixes and managerial changes, which have averted a series of potential relegations but failed to break the cycle of struggle.

“We’ve reached a point where we can’t have that short-term hit to plug the holes in the dam,” Bain said, pointing out that only three of the 46 players sold since 2009 made the club a profit.

“Maybe in the past – and I don’t want to talk disparagingly of anyone at the moment – we didn’t do the right due diligence on players. It’s the big buys that come back and haunt you. If you get those wrong, it causes you a big issue. There’s so much money involved that you need policies and procedures in place before buying, but there’s not been a lot of them at Sunderland.”

After pouring more than £200m into the club, Short has instructed his advisers to talk to parties displaying potential interest in buying him out for about £170m. Although more than one possible buyer is on the horizon, no sale appears imminent.

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Bain – who says he and Moyes are “not thinking about relegation at the minute” – is adamant the American financier would only sell to a party capable of turning Sunderland into a positive force. “We would listen to offers,” he said. “I believe Ellis has the interests of the club at heart and he wouldn’t turn away anything that is beneficial to Sunderland Football Club. I’m not saying Ellis Short is disappearing off into the horizon and is completely closing the purse strings, though. He is not.

“He wants what’s best for Sunderland. Does he still want us to succeed? Yes, he does. Is he taking money from Sunderland? No – and I am confident he will continue to fund the club and cover shortfalls. Ellis Short has put a lot of money into this football club. Ellis Short is passionate about Sunderland.”

Bain emphasised his admiration for Moyes, whose side host Chelsea on Wednesday night. “David is absolutely the right choice for us. I’m really pleased we’ve got him. We’re very, very fortunate. David works harder than most people I’ve met in the game.”

Bain also played down any concerns that either he or Moyes could be tempted to quit. “I really do believe in life that when you have a bond, a relationship, you don’t want to let one another down. I think I’ve got that with David. I wouldn’t want to walk out on David and I don’t think it’s in David’s character, either.”