4 overseas managers Sunderland must look at following Tony Mowbray decision | OneFootball

Shock news came out of the Stadium of Light on Monday night as Sunderland relieved head coach Tony Mowbray of his duties.

The 60-year-old, who had been in charge for over 15 months, was dismissed just days after he made comments suggesting that none of the four strikers that the club's recruitment staff signed over the summer were fully ready for Championship football.

Despite only being three points off the play-off spots of the second tier, Mowbray has seemingly paid the price for his comments with his job, and according to iNews, there is a strong likelihood that his replacement will come from overseas.

Let's take a look at FOUR potential candidates that owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus could look at in order to fit his model and criteria on Wearside.

Nestor El Maestro

El Maestro certainly has an interesting background, having been born in Serbia but grew up in England.

Gaining his UEFA B coaching license at the age of just 16, El Maestro did not have a playing career and went straight into the off-field side of the game, coaching a youth side at West Ham and then worked at the likes of Austria Vienna and Valencia at youth level before becoming Schalke's assistant manager at the age of just 23.

His first managerial role though came in 2017 with Spartak Trnava of Slovakia, where he won the domestic league title in his one and only full season, and he has since managed CSKA Sofia, Sturm Graz, Al-Taawoun and Goztepe.

Now aged 40, El Maestro is back in Bulgaria with Sofia and has them top of their division, but a number of years ago he expressed a desire to return to England one day to manage - that could now be a possibility with Sunderland if they are casting their net far and wide.

Jacob Neestrup

Having retired from football in his 20's, Neestrup began coaching at FC Copenhagen's youth setup and in 2013 he was their under-17's head coach at the age of just 25.

His work led to him becoming assistant manager for the Danish club's first-team before he moved on in 2019 to his first ever head coach role at senior level with Viborg.

Returning to Copenhagen as assistant manager at the start of 2021, leaving Viborg top of the second division of Danish football, Neestrup would be appointed as head coach in September 2022, and whilst his side may only be currently third in the Superliga after their title win last season, his win record of 55.65% is impressive for a 35-year-old.

And whilst Copenhagen are still in the UEFA Champions League for now, a move to Sunderland could give Neestrup the perfect platform for a move to the Premier League - it's only likely though if his side are knocked out of the group stages next week.

Kim Hellberg

Another 35-year-old coach who is doing good things is Hellberg, who is currently with IFK Värnamo of Sweden.Hellberg led Värnamo to a fifth-placed finish in the Allsvenskan in 2023 - their highest ever position in domestic football - and he is earning a reputation as a very inventive coach in Swedish football.An analysis of his style can be foundhere and with Marti Cifuentes already making an impact at QPR after his switch from Hammarby, it appeasr that Swedish football has some gems there - Hellberg could be worth the punt.

Bradley Carnell

A wildcard option could be Carnell, who has led St. Louis City to fourth place overall in the MLS in their first season in the league.

The 46-year-old was a defender in his playing days for South Africa, earning 42 caps for his country, but he worked his way through the Red Bull coaching system with the New York Red Bulls as he was an assistant coach there for four years between 2017 and 2021.

With a win record of 45 per cent since he became St. Louis head coach, Carnell - whilst not as young as the other candidates on this list - is showing a lot of promise as a boss so far so he could be a good fit at the Stadium of Light.