A former Sunderland hero has been labelled a ‘snake’ for what he did in 2022.
Sunderland fans went from adoring Alex Neil to very quickly growing a strong dislike for him during a sixth month period in 2022.
The 42-year-old arrived on Wearside in the February and went onto finally win them promotion at the fourth time of asking.
Neil became a hero and was loved among the Black Cats, but soon ruined his reputation and everything he had built at the club when he decided to join Stoke City.
The Scot looked committed and dedicated to staying at the Stadium of Light as they beat Stoke City 1-0, but it was only days later that he was rumoured to be interested in joining the Potters.
He then missed the Black Cats’ following match against Norwich to instead attend Stoke’s clash with Blackburn Rovers, before being appointed manager of the Midlands outfit.
Neil then became subject to a lot of abuse, but his recent sacking by the Potters has led him to attempting to save face with his former club.
Recent reports claimed that the coach is open to rejoining Sunderland, while he has now claimed that he had seen his future on Wearside but wasn’t offered the appropriate contract following promotion.
There has been plenty of talk over the last two years as to whether Neil was right to leave, or whether we would take him back after a disastrous few months at the club.
However, journalist Michael Graham has made his thoughts very clear, labelling Neil a ‘snake’.
He wrote on X: “Sunderland losing a few games doesn’t change the fact that Alex Neil is a snake who can’t be trusted. He was literally watching another team when his #SAFC had a game.”
Another post read: And let’s be clear on another thing: If Alex Neil wanted to be at Sunderland, he would be at Sunderland. He had the backing of everyone and a rolling contract. He didn’t want #SAFC, provable by his actions, and that’s worth remembering if you ever find yourself wanting him.”
Can we believe anything Alex Neil says?
Alex Neil is a brilliant speaker, and if you weren’t a Sunderland fan you would certainly be on his side.
However, Kristjaan Speakman had already claimed that he had signed off on fresh terms only a month before he left for Stoke, while he was then offered an even better contract before he agreed to his new job.
Neil was offered even more than what he wanted but still chose to move to the bet365 Stadium – so how can he possibly claim he wanted to stay at Sunderland?
The fans loved him and surely the owners knew just how important he was, so we would have done everything we could to keep him.
If his time with Stoke had gone better and was currently battling for promotion to the Premier League, he would not have said a word about Sunderland. He is only saying it now because he is unemployed, but he would definitely ditch us at the earliest chance he could get for the second time.