Sunderland should go all out to bring back Roy Keane to sort out this mess
Whether Republic of Ireland coach would even entertain the idea of working for Ellis Short again is anyone’s guess
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SIMON GRAYSON was sacked as Sunderland manager just eleven minutes after last night’s draw with Bolton.
The decision put an end to an absolutely awful four months of football under the stewardship of the former Leeds and Huddersfield gaffer.
The Black Cats were shoddy against basement-boys Bolton, but the speed at which the statement confirming that Grayson had been relieved of his duties was released suggests Martin Bain and Ellis Short had their minds made up before the game had even taken place.
I actually feel sorry for Grayson, because he’s clearly a good, honest man that had the best interests of the club at heart, but he just wasn’t getting a tune out of Sunderland’s failing players.
He left a stable job at Preston to take over the role as manager here and it just didn’t work out. It’s sad, but that’s just the way it goes sometimes.
Fact is, though, it was the correct decision - one that should have been brutally taken months ago.
I’ve no idea what it is that Grayson has been trying to do but, whatever it is, it just wasn’t working - the culmination of which occurred against Bolton as we failed to beat a side who haven’t won away from home in over thirty league games.
Grayson’s side played awful long-ball football, couldn’t defend, couldn’t play with even the slightest piece of pace or creativity and generally looked as though they had no idea as to what their jobs were on the pitch.
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With a squad of international defenders at his disposal, Grayson – a supposed ‘expert’ in defensive football – couldn’t manage to coach his players in the way in which he wanted, and as a result they failed to keep even just one clean sheet all season.
This club is a mess, and the problems seemingly transcend what happens in the manager’s office and on the training pitch, but it would be unfair not to acknowledge that Grayson should have done better with the squad at his disposal.
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The next managerial appointment that Bain makes has to be absolutely spot on, or we risk plunging even further into a relegation battle that will likely see us end up in League One.
Many Sunderland supporters want to see the club return back to some normality with our next appointment, and whenever a managerial crisis arises on Wearsude you tend to hear the same names bandied around.
Plenty of fans would welcome the return of a club legend to the hot seat and I have to admit, if they went with Kevin Ball I’d love nothing more than for him to do well here.
Personally though, I’d like to see us go all out for Roy Keane again – though, whether he’d even entertain the idea of working for Short again is anyone’s guess.
Keane wasn’t the most tactically astute manager but he commanded respect and expected nothing but the best from his players, befitting of a man that won just about every honour in club football.
Sunderland need a big character to breeze their way through the club in order for us to rid ourselves of this stink which will see us eventually relegated to the third tier if we don’t get the next managerial appointment absolutely spot on.
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