Alex Neil: Sunderland appoint ex-Norwich and Preston boss as new head coach - BBC Sport
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Alex Neil: Sunderland appoint ex-Norwich and Preston boss as new head coach

Last updated on .From the section Sunderlandcomments369

Alex Neil
Alex Neil won 72 of his 191 games in charge of Preston North End in all competitions - a win rate of 37.7%

Sunderland have appointed former Norwich City and Preston North End boss Alex Neil as their new head coach on a 12-month rolling deal.

The 40-year-old joins after the League One Black Cats parted company with Lee Johnson following their 6-0 thrashing by Bolton Wanderers on 29 January.

Neil's arrival comes after negotiations ended with former boss Roy Keane.

The Scot will take charge of Saturday's game at AFC Wimbledon with his new side fourth in the table.

"It is a privilege to be head coach of Sunderland AFC," Neil said.

"Everything that I saw from the players this morning made me really confident and gave me belief, so what we now need to do is replicate that on a matchday - when it matters - under scrutiny and under pressure.

"Our task is to try to win as many games as we possibly can and at this moment in time we are focused on this season and this season alone."

Former Hamilton Academical manager Martin Canning will be Neil's assistant at the Stadium of Light.

Sunderland had been second in League One after their win against Portsmouth on 22 January, but since Johnson's sacking, they subsequently lost against Doncaster and Cheltenham to drop to fourth.

Neil's managerial career has seen promotions with both Hamilton and Norwich to the Scottish and English top flights.

He won promotion with the Canaries to the Premier League after they beat Middlesbrough in the 2015 Championship play-off final - a win which came just five months after he took charge at Carrow Road.

Having taken over at Deepdale in 2017 from Simon Grayson - who left to join Sunderland at the time - Neil oversaw mid-table stability for Preston in the Championship.

He was sacked last season, however, after just one win in nine Championship matches with the club 16th and nine points off the relegation places.

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369 comments

  • Comment posted by Andrew JG_8921, at 20:55 11 Feb 2022

    Guarantee he’ll take Sunderland in the playoffs but good to see him back in football manager job and as head coach of Sunderland. Wish him best of luck.

    • Reply posted by Leslie Thornton, at 21:53 11 Feb 2022

      Leslie Thornton replied:
      Each to their own, but not sure what this is all about lad.

  • Comment posted by DH, at 21:55 11 Feb 2022

    Wanted Keane to get it. Will have to continue to watch Sky football without sound now.

    • Reply posted by Common Times, at 11:54 12 Feb 2022

      Common Times replied:
      Keane will be the new Manchester United Manager soon.

  • Comment posted by Craig, at 21:02 11 Feb 2022

    He has the job now, the only thing to do is back the Team and the Manager. He is a decent guy. Good luck Sunderland.

    • Reply posted by D1674926596395, at 21:10 11 Feb 2022

      D1674926596395 replied:
      Same was said about Ross Parkinson and Johnson and they all failed.

  • Comment posted by JillMiller, at 11:19 12 Feb 2022

    Sunderland, a team that gets up to 30k fans a week get almost no coverage at all on the BBC except when a manager is sacked. Women’s football get tens of articles a day yet the average attendance is under 1500 despite ticket prices at about £3, and hundreds are given away for free. It’s absolutely ridiculous. Why is my license fee spent on this? And where does it end?

    • Reply posted by JillMiller, at 11:22 12 Feb 2022

      JillMiller replied:
      And by where does it end I mean you can take any protected characteristic you want and make the exact same argument for promoting it on the BBC. Blind football? Over 60s football? The arguments are identical and you’d just end up with a page full of spam and clickbait.

  • Comment posted by InvernessFan, at 20:59 11 Feb 2022

    He is a good manager. He did well at Norwich, Hamilton and Preston. I am Scottish and hope he does well at Sunderland.

    • Reply posted by D1674926596395, at 21:20 11 Feb 2022

      D1674926596395 replied:
      If he did well why did they both sack him ?????

  • Comment posted by Weirdside Wally, at 23:04 11 Feb 2022

    12 managers in 10 years is why they are an unstable club
    more years in division 3 await

    • Reply posted by Scot2014, at 08:08 12 Feb 2022

      Scot2014 replied:
      Agree. Sunderland need to find a manager ai8nd stick with him (or her) through thick and thin.
      My son-in-law is a Geordie and he is absolutely delighted that Sunderland are stuck in League 1.
      A big club you should be in the PL so come on get it done!

  • Comment posted by Disco pants, at 21:05 11 Feb 2022

    Doesn't matter who the manager is, they'll bottle it again. But they are lucky they didn't get Keane back, anyone is better for team spirit that that misery.

    • Reply posted by D1710935599967, at 21:20 11 Feb 2022

      D1710935599967 replied:
      niel is a lot better than some of these people think he came down from scotland and got norwich up then was sacked look at them now i dont know what went on at preston but he seems to get the sh*t end of the stick i hope he gets better treatment at sunderland and i hope he does well for you all the best {lcfc fan}

  • Comment posted by Catch23, at 21:13 11 Feb 2022

    Might work out, might not. It's fairly low risk on a 12 month rolling contract. The time he was in charge of my team (Norwich) from replacing Neil Adams to the play off final are some of my most cherished times supporting my club. They played some glorious football. He wasn't that bad in the premier league and almost kept us up. Unfortunately, he spent too much money on mediocre players.

    • Reply posted by Early Ball, at 22:10 11 Feb 2022

      Early Ball replied:
      Did he sign Godfrey and Maddison?

  • Comment posted by Braddy, at 21:02 11 Feb 2022

    Good luck Alex.....#Accieslegend

    • Reply posted by Leslie Thornton, at 21:50 11 Feb 2022

      Leslie Thornton replied:
      That's nothing to brag about though is it? Up there with the likes of Colin Harris and Fergie lol.

  • Comment posted by gurks, at 21:02 11 Feb 2022

    Sunderland can’t really attract a premiere league or Championship manager , so I think it’s a good appointment. Make the most .

    • Reply posted by D1674926596395, at 21:04 11 Feb 2022

      D1674926596395 replied:
      We cant because we have an unambitious board not because of SAFC.

  • Comment posted by Cheshire Tommy , at 23:01 11 Feb 2022

    Good luck Alex. As a Leeds fan I know only too well what it’s like for a great club like the Mackems suffering in division 3, give the guy a chance and see what he can do over the next 12 months or so

  • Comment posted by Stone Roses, at 22:33 11 Feb 2022

    In my opinion,the wrong Johnson got sacked

    • Reply posted by Peter, at 22:45 11 Feb 2022

      Peter replied:
      The thought of Boris managing a football club.....two bottles of champagne and a prawn sandwich please. Oh yes. Go and kick the silly buggers.

  • Comment posted by EducateMe, at 07:38 12 Feb 2022

    Football management is the only job where the number of times you have been sacked is a positive feature of your CV.

    • Reply posted by gadgyarab, at 10:12 12 Feb 2022

      gadgyarab replied:
      yes, it's all about experience and having a manager's job is better than not, means that another club believed in you!

  • Comment posted by CatPainBlackUdder, at 08:06 12 Feb 2022

    Foolish to sack Johnson and that's clearly cost them 6 points since. Neil is a good appointment but he'll need to get results quickly. Sunderland have looked ridiculous over all this and would have looked even more stupid if Keane had got the job.

  • Comment posted by robert, at 21:21 11 Feb 2022

    Criminally underrated manager. Loved him at Norwich!

    • Reply posted by Leslie Thornton, at 21:46 11 Feb 2022

      Leslie Thornton replied:
      Lol he makes Farke look like a genius.

  • Comment posted by tony1984, at 21:23 11 Feb 2022

    People too quick to critacise a manager even before a ball been kicked. Could be the type of manager to take you up! If your team responds well to him then you have the perfect fit

    • Reply posted by Southsider, at 21:40 11 Feb 2022

      Southsider replied:
      Peaked at Hamilton Acccies really, had them playing some good stuff in the SPFL for half a season.

  • Comment posted by saddletramp , at 07:16 12 Feb 2022

    The gap between the championship and league 1 is huge.

    13 out of 21 promoted teams have come straight back down in the last 7 years,

    If Wigan go up this season,it will be for the third time since 2016.

    Sunderland are a far bigger club than Burnley,but if Burnley go down in 20th, they will this season get £100 MILLION + parachute payments.

    Can ANY league 1 team compete with that sort of money ?

    • Reply posted by Chunky Monkey, at 07:30 12 Feb 2022

      Chunky Monkey replied:
      They could ask Newcastle for a loan 👍 or even better they could become a feeder club for Newcastle

  • Comment posted by GrassRootsFootballFan, at 08:21 12 Feb 2022

    Successful clubs at all levels appoint a manager, back him, and stick with him. Twelve managers in thirteen years says everything you need to know about the reason Sunderland are in the third division (whatever the EFL brand it it's not league 1). Given the circumstances of Johnson's sacking I doubt if the club have a long term plan and not sure he will last longer than the usual 12 months.

  • Comment posted by davebmk, at 21:23 11 Feb 2022

    I'm quite happy to have Alex Neil, liked the idea of someone like Patrick Kisnarbo, but mid-season probably best to stick with someone with EFL experience. Neil's record looks like it could be upgraded given the spending restrictions he's faced. He must fix our defensive frailty, without which we'd be in an automatic spot. Surprised that Johnson couldn't do that, but let's give Neil our support.

  • Comment posted by Daveyboy12, at 21:29 11 Feb 2022

    An excellent appointment....

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