Will Still revelation emerges despite Sunderland AFC appointing Regis Le Bris | OneFootball

Will Still was heavily linked with the Sunderland head coach vacancy prior to Régis Le Bris' appointment

Sunderland missed out on the appointment of Will Still due to Lens’ greater financial offer.

According to The Northern Echo, the belief at the Stadium of Light is that the Black Cats would have appointed the 31-year-old but for French side Lens.

Régis Le Bris officially took charge of the first team squad over the weekend, signing a three-year deal to replace Michael Beale.

Beale was dismissed in February, with Mike Dodds overseeing the end of the campaign on an interim basis.

The Frenchman was one of several names linked with the vacancy, including Still, and has made the switch from Ligue 2 side Lorient.

Sunderland’s Will Still stance

It’s understood that Still would be the Sunderland manager right now but for Lens moving in for him.

Up to five names were shortlisted by the Black Cats during their search for Beale’s successor, which included Le Bris.

Once Still departed Reims in May via mutual consent, Still moved to the front of the list due to being available without the need for compensation.

However, it’s been reported that Lens made a stronger financial offer to the young coach, who opted to remain in France for the next step in his career.

Otherwise, it’s believed that Still would be in charge of the team and not Le Bris.

It has also been claimed that Kristjaan Speakman’s statement from earlier this month regarding an appointment being imminent was about the arrival of Le Bris from Lorient.

However, Sunderland underestimated how long the process would take for the 48-year-old to be granted a work permit, which led to the delay that had supporters grumbling.

Le Bris spent two years at Lorient, leading them to a 10th place finish in his first campaign, before overseeing their relegation to the second tier of French football last season.

A busy transfer window for Sunderland

The new Sunderland head coach will have his work cut out for him immediately, with several key first team players linked with a summer move away.

It has been reported that Southampton are interested in star forward Jack Clarke, with Pierre Ekwah attracting interest from Ipswich Town.

A number of clubs are also circling around Trai Hume, meaning Le Bris will have to resolve these situations ahead of pre-season.

The new Sunderland boss will also want to work with Speakman to identify potential transfer targets of his own, as he eyes improvements to the team for the upcoming term.

Sunderland needed to act more quickly in Still pursuit

Still left Reims near the end of May, and wasn’t appointed by Lens until 10 June, giving the Black Cats a small window where they could’ve acted more decisively to get their man.

Le Bris’ appointment will come with immediate pressure to perform given the failure to capture the highly-rated Still.

The long process to find an appointment also means that the Frenchman has to have made this period of patience worthwhile.

Given the circumstances surrounding the team, this will be a difficult task for the 48-year-old, who has an underwhelming record from his time at Lorient.