Sunderland AFC struck gold with combined £600k expense on Watford FC transfer and Jermain Defoe | OneFootball

FLW have looked at two legendary signings for the Black Cats

Sunderland AFC have had their fair share of legendary players over the years at the Stadium of Light, especially when the club was in the Premier League on numerous occasions from 1997 to 2017.

The Black Cats boast a proud history of nearly 150 years since being founded in 1879, with six top-flight titles and two FA Cup triumphs to their name in the 20th century.

Historic club figures such as Bobby Kerr, Jimmy Montgomery and Charlie Hurley are fondly remembered by supporters of a certain vintage, but while their major trophy haul has not been extended since 1973, modern-day fans can still call on numerous well-known players as club legends and cult-heroes over the last 30 years.

FLW have identified two superb signings for Sunderland from this more recent period, with both of these players holding a special place in the hearts of Black Cats supporters for their respective performances on Wearside.

Kevin Phillips

Kevin Phillips himself could not have dreamed of what he went on to achieve with Sunderland after a £600,000 move from Watford in July 1997. He etched his name in Black Cats' folklore for his outstanding showings on Wearside in the six seasons he was at the club.

Phillips was a number nine in the purest form, a lethal finisher who was solely focused on scoring more goals than anyone else, and despite an initial slow start to his time at the Stadium of Light, he soon found his shooting boots and became the first Sunderland player to score 30 goals in a season since Brian Clough in 1961/62 in his debut Division One campaign.

The Hertfordshire-born striker soon fired the Black Cats back to the Premier League in his second season, with 23 goals from just 26 league games, which saw him earn a call-up to the England national team while he was still playing the second-tier.

He was tipped to struggle in the top-flight, but instead formed a deadly double act with fellow frontman Niall Quinn and netted 30 league goals to win both the Premier League Golden Boot and the coveted European Golden Shoe award, becoming the first Englishman ever to do so. It was an unprecedented outstanding campaign from a player who had never even appeared in the top-flight before that season.

Sunderland, meanwhile, had only just missed out on a UEFA Cup place thanks to his unbelievable form, which happened again in 2000/01 after he had bagged 18 goals in all competitions, and they finished seventh for a second season running.

His goal contributions in his final two years on Wearside were less consistent, but he still managed to score 11 and six league goals in the 2001/02 and 2002/03 campaigns before the Black Cats were relegated back to the second-tier, and he moved on to Southampton for a fee of £3.25 million.

Phillips became a Sunderland hero in his first season at the club, and by the time he left, he was, and still is, regarded as one of the greatest ever players to pull on the red and white stripes. Black Cats supporters could only really dream of a striker of his calibre plying their trade at the club nowadays.

Jermain Defoe

Fast-forward another 12 years, and Sunderland had struggled to produce another striker of Phillips' potency before England international frontman Jermain Defoe moved to the North East from Toronto FC as part of a player-exchange deal with Jozy Altidore.

Defoe was playing professional football for West Ham while Phillips was ripping it up at the Stadium of Light, and had been a clinical centre-forward for the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Portsmouth before an eventual move to the Black Cats at the age of 32 in 2015.

Age was just a number for the Beckton-born striker, however, and he rolled back the years with numerous star turns throughout his time at the club, including an iconic long-range strike in his first Tyne-Wear derby against Newcastle United to move Sunderland away from the Premier League relegation zone.

The 57-time England international was crucial to the Black Cats across all three seasons at the club, and he netted 15 times in the league and was also named the club's player of the season in 2015/16 as they avoided relegation once again. He scored his 150th Premier League goal in November 2016, and also won the hearts of Sunderland supporters and the world of football for his friendship with terminally ill mascot Bradley Lowery.

He won his final call-up to the England national team in his last season at the Stadium of Light due to his excellent form, which again saw him net a further 15 strikes in the Premier League despite their relegation under David Moyes.

Defoe may have joined Sunderland pretty late in his career, but he has undoubtedly gone down as a Black Cats great for his brilliant performances over his three seasons at the club. He even returned in 2022 for an emotional final spell in the Championship, but struggled for fitness and retired while at the club in March of the same year.