Sunderland could make big push to appoint Will Still this weekend

The 31-year-old is still a target for the Black Cats

• Sunderland still keen on Will Still as manager despite earlier setbacks.
•  Club making big push to secure Still’s agreement ahead of next season.
•  Arrival of new boss crucial for Sunderland’s preparation and potential success in 2024/25.

Sunderland have seemingly not given up hope of appointing Will Still as their manager just yet.

That’s after journalist Alan Nixon reported that the Black Cats could make a big push to convince the 31-year-old to make the move to The Stadium of Light this weekend.

Sunderland have been without a manager since February, when Michael Beale was sacked from the role after just two months in charge.

Mike Dodds subsequently stepped into the dugout at The Stadium of Light for the remainder of the 2023/24 season as interim manager.

Now however, it appears as though the club are now taking further steps in an attempt to lock in their new permanent manager, which may yet be Will Still.

Sunderland to make fresh push for Will Still agreement

Earlier this season, it was reported that Black Cats owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus

had held positive talks about taking over as manager, following the departure of Tony Mowbray.

Ultimately, no deal meterialised, with Beale instead taking charge at the

Stadium of Light, while Still remained in charge of Reims in the French top-flight.

With it being confirmed that Still was leaving Reims at the end of the season, that had seemed to open the door for Sunderland to revisit that potential appointment.

 

However, claims earlier this week suggested that the 31-year-old was set to

remain in Ligue 1 with Lens. Now though, it appears that Sunderland are

going to make one more push to win the race to bring Still in this summer.

 

As per this latest update, the now former Reims manager remains in contention

for the job at Stadium of Light, despite the fact he is talking to other clubs, with Lens waiting on his decision.

 

It is thought that the 31-year-old is now Sunderland’s top target for the role, and

will agree to join whichever club offers him the best package.

 

As a result, it is suggested that the Black Cats could now make a considerable

effort to convince Still to make a move to England over the course of the weekend.

 

This season ended in underwhelming fashion for Sunderland, who finished the

campaign 16th in the Championship table, six points clear of the relegation zone.

Championship standings 2023/24
	Team	P	GD	Pts
9	Coventry City	46	11	64
10	Preston North End	46	-11	63
11	Bristol City	46	2	62
12	Cardiff City	46	-17	62
13	Millwall	46	-10	59
14	Swansea City	46	-6	57
15	Watford	46	0	56
16	Sunderland	46

A big few days coming up for the Black Cats

It feels as though this is setting Sunderland up for what could already be a crucial few days in the context of their 2024/25 campaign.

The Black Cats have been waiting a long time to get a new manager in, which is in itself going to be raising questions about how long it is taking to make such an important move.

Beyond that, they are going to need to get a new boss in quickly, so they can properly start to put their plans in place for the coming season.

It would also be a major boost for Sunderland if they are able to bring in Still to fill that role, given the promise he has shown in his managerial career so far suggests he could take the club a long way.

 

With that in mind, this certainly seems like it will be one to keep a close eye on over the course of the next few days, given what it could mean for the Black Cats next season.