Sunderland intend to make a quick decision on their new manager after Alex Neil’s shock departure, but front runner Tony Mowbray is not guaranteed the role.
i understands Mowbray held talks with Sunderland over the weekend but there is still much more to be done before an agreement is reached for the former Middlesbrough and West Brom manager to take over at the Stadium of Light. One source described claims it is a done deal flatly “untrue” and claimed there’s still “a lot more talking” to be done before Mowbray is announced.
There is certainly interest there. Mowbray worked with Sunderland Head of Recruitment Stuart Harvey at Blackburn and would have no problem fitting into the club’s model, which is led by influential director of football Kristjaan Speakman. He also has a track record at Ewood Park of stabilising a club in the Championship and improved them, bringing through young talent in Lancashire before Rovers opted for a different direction in the summer.
But while Sunderland want to make a fairly rapid appointment, they are still intent on going through a process before appointing the new man.
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It’s also understood that MK Dons coach Liam Manning is also in contention for the vacancy, having been on the shortlist last time out.
If the club turn to an experienced option, Mick McCarthy and Neil Warnock – who both threw their hats in the ring last time – remain keen to talk about the possibility of a short-term role.
Sunderland’s defeat on Saturday was their first at home since returning to the Championship but the Black Cats played well in difficult circumstances, and there are signs that the club’s support has been galvanised by Neil’s surprise departure rather than Friday’s developments turning them against the club’s model.
Many will look at Neil’s decision with bemusement. But the imminent arrival of Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Edouard Michut neatly sums up the issues that led to it.
The 19-year-old will be announced by the Wearsiders this week – his capture a real coup for a Championship club given his talent and previous caps for France at under-age level. It is also unusual, given many of their rivals would not take anything like that kind of risk in a very competitive Championship.
But Sunderland are determined to do things differently, recruiting mostly players under 23 who their clubs are reluctant to let go but want to leave because the Black Cats have a plan to push young talent to the fore.
It is not a path that will necessarily be smooth and Neil, clearly, didn’t fancy it. He signed a new contract just a month ago but reservations about the direction manifested themselves in his decision to talk away. He turned down fresh terms on Friday after Stoke approached him about their vacancy.
His decision to leave is partly about a pay rise and greater security in a new role but also revealed tensions bubbling away with the club’s philosophy, which is driven by Speakman and fully supported by the club’s majority shareholder Kyril Louis-Dreyfus.
The remit is clear: they want to recruit and develop young, talented players. The old Sunderland, who spent and wasted millions on established talent who moved to Wearside for a pay day, was clearly not fit for purpose but the new strategy carries both risk and reward.
Sunderland point to millions invested in players, improved facilities and innovation at the training ground as proof of their desire to “do it differently” and they deserve credit for that.
But as Neil proved in his short, successful stay, it also requires someone with real know how and the right personality to take those raw materials and turn them into a success. They simply have to get their next appointment right.
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