Significant Sunderland, Will Still update emerges as manager saga continues | OneFootball

Sunderland are still on the hunt for a new head coach, some three months after sacking Mick Beale following a dismal two months in charge on Wearside.

The Stadium of Light faithful will have been disappointed by the club's underwhelming 16th place finish and a run of just two wins from their last 10 games under the management of interim boss Mike Dodds.

The Black Cats will now hope for a successful summer transfer window with a new manager at the helm, and they have been consistently linked with former Stade de Reims boss Will Still.

However, their hunt for the 31-year-old has reportedly taken a major setback.

Sunderland unlikely to appoint Will Still as head coach

On Friday morning, sports journalist Michael Graham posted on X: "As I understand it, #SAFC increasingly unlikely to appoint Will Still.

"Looking at other options on their list instead."

The Black Cats may be disappointed by this development as Still was successful with Reims in Ligue 1, guiding the club to an 11th-placed finish at the end of the 2022/23 campaign, and they were in the same position this past season before he departed his role at the start of May.

The Englishman boasts an impressive win ratio throughout his career, and according to FotMob, he won 70% of games he managed with Lierse in Belgium, between October and December 2017.

He went on to manage Beerschot from January 2021 until June of that year, and boasted a win record of 40% with the Belgian second division outfit, picking up an average of 1.3 points per game.

With Reims, the toughest job Still has held so far, he maintained a win percentage of 39%, earning a points per game average of 1.4, wand for much of his managerial career with the Ligue 1 outfit, they had to pay a fine of £22,000 every game as the boss did not possess an UEFA Pro Licence.

As reported by GiveMeSport, the 31-year-old was a keen player of the video game Football Manager, before becoming an actual football manager.

Still's impressive win percentage may have left the Black Cats faithful hopeful that their club would appoint him, but it does not look as though it will be the case - the Belgium-born coach has however talked to Norwich City regarding their own vacancy this week.

Sunderland are continuing their search for a new manager

As Sunderland look to strengthen ahead of the 2024/25 season, it is imperative that they bring a new manager to the helm as soon as possible.

However, the latest Still development is not the only blow the North East side have suffered in their search for a new boss, as according to The Sun, the Black Cats were lining up a move for Bundesliga boss Bo Svensson recently.

However, the ex-Mainz manager was appointed by Union Berlin on Thursday as their new boss, which takes another candidate out of the equation.

Furthermore, another target in Sheffield Wednesday head coach Danny Rohl has now signed a contract extension at Hillsborough, taking the German off the table too.

Former Hull City boss Liam Rosenior has been linked with the Mackems by Alan Nixon via Patreon, after the Tigers sacked him following the conclusion of the 2023/24 season.

Despite failing to land a play-off spot, Rosenior undoubtedly performed well for the East Yorkshire club for a long period of time, taking them to the brink of the top six this time around, narrowly missing out by three points.

The 39-year-old could be a solid Still alternative, and his ability to develop young players as seen during his time with the Tigers, could be ideal for the Black Cats, who place a heavy impetus on youth.