Triantis has established himself as a favourite at Easter Road in two separate loan spells in which he’s reinvented himself as a holding midfielder.
The Scottish Premiership side are now desperate to make the loan move permanent this summer, with manager David Gray and sporting director Malky Mackay prioritising the capture of the 22-year-old.
But Sunderland have reportedly made it clear Hibs must cough up if they want to sign the Australian international, who still has two years to run on his Stadium of Light contract.
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Reports in Scotland say the Black Cats are willing to negotiate on the up-front fee but are adamant the transfer package must be worth in excess of £1m.
Triantis made one League Cup appearance for Regis Le Bris but doesn’t feature in the Frenchman’s plans as Sunderland prepare for their return to the Premier League.
The midfielder last month pulled out of Australia’s squad for their World Cup qualifiers against Japan and South American because he had “a lot on his mind”.
Australia boss Tony Popovic said: “I’m not too sure where it exactly sits. But we had him in the squad for the camp, and on the day that he was supposed to travel, he informed us that he’s not coming in.
“He just said he’s got a lot of things on at the moment, a lot on his mind in terms of what he wants to do. We have to respect that, and we’ll see what happens.”
There has also been talk of overseas interest in Triantis, who has made five appearances for Sunderland since joining from Central Coast Mariners two years ago.
