John Barnes is NOT on Niall's paylist

Barnes, who also used to play for North-East rivals Newcastle, sparked a media frenzy when it seemed he had been snapped up by Roy Keane and co. However, it seems that is not the case and Barnes is not part of the Sunderland set-up.

Instead, he has travelled to the Caribbean to be part of a competition which will see the best youth talent from the continent battle it out for a place at Premier League clubs.

Barnes told the Guardian: "I'll be choosing the best players to go to Sunderland.

"They recognise that, although Africa is saturated [with English scouts from the leading clubs], the Caribbean is the next place they are going to get the talent to hopefully grace the Premier League."