Reims manager Will Still and Kieran McKenna of Championship rivals Ipswich Town are among the candidates under consideration by a Sunderland side who sacked Tony Mowbray on Tuesday.
That is according to TEAMtalk.
And while both Will Still and Kieran McKenna certainly fall into the ‘ambitious’ camp, their emergence as potential candidates will come as no real surprise to those who flicked through Mowbray’s i News autopsy.
Sunderland owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and sporting director Kristjaan Speakman, the i News write, are likely to prioritise an up-and-coming, forward-thinking coach with a reputation for youth development, and one who would buy into their youth-first recruitment strategy. One potentially with a background on the continent.
Sunderland looking for a new manager
The Black Cats looked at Francesco Farioli and Matthias Jaissle when considering Mowbray’s future over the summer. And Will Still, the 31-year-old Belgian born to English parents, represents a continuation of that trend.
Still took over a relatively unfancied Reims outfit on an interim basis in late-2022 and quickly earned himself the permanent job. Now fifth in France’s top flight, Still’s team continue to confound expectations with budding talents such as Amir Richardson, Mohammed Daramy and Folarin Balogun (last season’s 22-goal loan star) thriving.
Eddie Howe, who’s Newcastle United side will take on arch rivals Sunderland in the FA Cup third round in January, recently described the job Still has done across the Channel as ‘incredible’, per The Chronicle.
Tony Mowbray sacked
Such superlatives have been heading McKenna’s way too, successive promotions a very realistic possibility for the former Manchester United assistant at Ipswich Town.
McKenna’s terrific Tractor Boys have won a staggering 27 of their last 34 league games. One suspects, however, that Sunderland will find it exceedingly difficult convincing the 37-year-old to walk away from Portman Road given the air of optimism and excitement currently hanging over Ipswich.
Gary Lineker, on his The Rest is Football podcast, recently labelled McKenna the best coach currently outside of the Premier League.
“I’m going to go with Kieran McKenna from Ipswich Town,” the Match of the Day host said. “I think he’s done a brilliant job with them.”
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