Sunderland could now appoint Michael Beale as their new manager this weekend.
The club have been without a head coach since Tony Mowbray was sacked almost two weeks ago, days after they held Millwall to a 1-1 draw in the Championship.
The Black Cats looked hot on the tail of Reims manager Will Still, however a move for the Belgian looked to have fallen through and Sunderland instead turned their attention to Michael Beale.
Fabrizio Romano claimed yesterday that Sunderland had ‘reached an agreement’ with the 43-year-old, with an announcement potentially coming ‘today’.
On his X account, the journalist wrote: “Sunderland have reached an agreement with Michael Beale as former Rangers manager will be appointed as new head coach.
“He was the ‘secret’ candidate as Will Still deal was never sealed or closed. Announcement for Beale as new #SAFC coach could be today.”
Of course, Beale’s arrival wasn’t confirmed yesterday, though Romano’s claim suggests it is imminent.
Meanwhile, The Guardian have reported that his move to Wearside is ‘all but rubber-stamped’, with the former Rangers boss expected to be in attendance at today’s Championship clash with Bristol City.
Mike Dodds will continue in his role as interim head coach for today’s trip south, while Beale is set to take charge for next week’s meeting with Coventry City.
How should we feel about Michael Beale’s arrival?
Michael Beale’s impending appointment comes only days after fans had been left excited by the possibility of seeing Will Still take the reins.
The 31-year-old had held ‘positive talks’ with Kyril Louis-Dreyfus over a potential move from Reims, though it now looks like he will remain in France.
Supporters have been left extremely underwhelmed that the club have gone from an exciting, young, multilingual coach, to Beale, who isn’t particularly inspiring.
But that being said, most of us thought exactly the same thing when Alex Neil and Tony Mowbray were appointed, and they both ended up being two of the best appointments we have made in a very long time.
Louis-Dreyfus and Kristjaan Speakman have got a lot right since the 25-year-old arrived on Wearside, and I think they have earned our trust at this point.
It is extremely difficult not to be disappointed, but there is clearly a number of reasons why they believe Beale is the right man for the job. Hopefully the former QPR coach can come and redeem himself after underperforming at Rangers, but we will make his life a lot harder if we can’t get behind him.