Sunderland AFC: 44-year-old emerges as rival to Will Still and Paul Heckingbottom for managerial vacancy | OneFootball

Sunderland have shortlisted 44-year-old coach Bo Svensson for their vacant managerial position, it has emerged.

The Dane has been out of work since leaving Bundesliga outfit Mainz in November and it now appears his next vacancy could be in the Championship.

Bo Svensson linked with Sunderland vacancy

According to Alan Nixon via Patreon, Svensson has been shortlisted for the role and may appeal more to the club than some of the names previously linked with the job.

Those names include former Sheffield United boss Paul Heckingbottom and former Reims manager Will Still, both of whom are also currently out of work.

Nixon re-affirms that these names have been considered, stating that the club have considered the strong work that Heckingbottom did when taking Sheffield United to the Premier League.

Despite having managed in the top-flight in Germany, Nixon claims Svensson could be tempted by the move to the Championship if Sunderland can match his ambitions.

Who is Bo Svensson?

As touched upon above, Bo Svensson is a 44-year-old Danish coach and is still relatively early on in his managerial career.

To date, the Dane has held two jobs at senior level, first at FC Liefering and then at Mainz.

These came after multiple jobs in the Mainz youth set up after his retirement in 2014.

Svensson took the job at FC Liefering in 2019, who play their football in the second tier of Austrian football and are essentially a feeder club to Red Bull Salzburg in the top division.

Svensson led the side to a third-place finish in his first full season in charge, and was then poached six months into his second season at the club by German side Mainz.

Mainz were in the relegation zone when Svensson took over, but the Danish coach steered them clear of the drop, guiding them to a 12th place finish in 2020/21.

Svensson followed this up with 8th and 9th finishes respectively in 2021/22 and 2022/23 before resigning last November after a winless start to his third full season in charge of the club.

As a player, Svensson played for FC Copenhagen, Borussia Monchengladbach and Mainz.

Sunderland spoilt for choice

Bo Svensson certainly seems like a strong candidate for the vacant Sunderland position and a good fit for the Black Cats.

Not only does he have excellent pedigree having managed in the top flight of Germany, having guided Mainz to very respectable finishes, he also has experience working with young players, which could be important at Sunderland given their transfer policy in recent years.

Having worked in the youth set up at Mainz and with FC Liefering, RB Salzburg's feeder club, Svensson will be used to working with and improving young players, helping them to fulfil their potential, which is surely something Sunderland would be keen on.

With links to Heckingbottom, Still and now Svensson, it just goes to show that Sunderland are somewhat spoilt for choice when it comes to who they hire as their next manager.

For different reasons, all three would be strong candidates and impressive hires for the position.