English side Sunderland have decided not to take up an option to buy on-loan Ghanaian midfielder Sulley Muntari on a permanent deal after a six-month stay at the club.
The Black Cats have confirmed that they will send the Ghana international back to Inter Milan immediately.
Muntari has failed to impress since moving to Wearside in January and Sunderland boss Steve Bruce will look elsewhere for reinforcements in the summer.
Bruce said: "Sulley has been a great professional in his time here and naturally we'd like to thank him for his contribution to our season and wish him all the best for the future."
The 26-year-old former Portsmouth star contributed to the Black Cats' winner at Bolton last week.
His shot was bundled into his own net by Zat Knight - but has otherwise disappointed and will not feature for the club again.
Sunderland were prepared to smash their wage structure to land him permanently while Inter’s willingness to let him leave put the Black Cats in pole position for his signature.
But after impressing on his debut at Stoke, Muntari struggled to exert his authority on games and lacked the same hunger he had shown during his days at Pompey.
He was troubled by calf problems and started just one of the last three games despite Sunderland’s dire injury list.