Premier League duo Newcastle United and Sunderland are battling it out to sign Leeds United defender Sol Bamba, according to reports from the Daily Star.

Bamba has struggled for regular minutes on the pitch since the arrival of Steve Evans as manager at Leeds and as a result, the 31-year-old is expected to leave Elland Road in January.

Reports suggest that Tyne-Wear foesNewcastle and Sunderland are interested in signing Bamba and the north east rivals are currently involved in a head to head battle to secure the services of the former Leicester City defender.