Niall Quinn wants to step up his efforts in the transfer market after the Sunderland squad returned to training.
New manager Steve Bruce and his players got down to business on Thursday with chairman Quinn working hard behind the scenes to land his targets.
Quinn said: "There's a great excitement around the place and, after all the talking we have been doing for the last six weeks, it's all now down to the action.
"The players coming back is a big thing. The place is a hive of activity."
To date, only Michael Chopra and Greg Halford have left the club, and it seems likely that there will be further departures even though Bruce has promised every player a chance to prove himself.
football terms
They will play their first pre-season friendly at Darlington next Thursday and the chairman admits he cannot wait to see Geordie Bruce get down to business.
Quinn told the club's official website: "He's clued in. He's with it. Above all, he understands and he gets what this area is all about in football terms.
"Whether he was born five or six miles left or right, that's not the point. The point is that he knows what gets a north east crowd at the edge of their seats."
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