Sunderland’s interim head coach Mike Dodds discusses the club’s recruitment process ahead of the summer transfer window
Interim head coach Mike Dodds will give his thoughts at Sunderland’s next recruitment meeting as the club look ahead to the summer transfer window.
Dodds will take charge of the Black Cats’ remaining fixtures this season, following last month’s decision to part company with Michael Beale. Like many clubs, Sunderland operate with a head coach rather than a manager, whose main focus is to coach the team while others deal with transfer negotiations and signing players.
When Sunderland sacked Mowbray on December 4, there was a mixed reaction from Black Cats supporters. Mowbray was a popular figure after reaching the play-offs last season, yet a run of just two wins in nine had left some wondering if he could take the club to the next level.
Sunderland’s next appointment had to be seen as an upgrade, while talk Will Still arriving from French club Reims brought a sense of intrigue among the fanbase. It suggested the club could appoint a young, up-and-coming head coach with a potentially high ceiling.
Other coaches from Europe were linked with the vacancy before Beale was eventually appointed two and a half weeks after Mowbray’s departure. Following a challenging spell at Rangers, Beale’s arrival was seen as hugely underwhelming before he’d even begun.
The derby defeat
After a chastening 3-0 home defeat against Coventry in Beale’s first match, Sunderland took seven points from their next three league games, including wins against play-off rivals Hull and Preston.
Then came the FA Cup tie against Newcastle, with emotions running high after the controversial ticket allocation and redecorating of the Black Cats Bar. While Eddie Howe’s side were always going to be big favourites, as the Premier League team, Sunderland never looked like causing an upset.
A more conservative approach
Beale clearly wanted to make Sunderland harder to beat, with more focus on how the side set up out of possession and staying compact in the centre of the pitch.
The raw statistics actually don’t show a decline in terms of league results, with Beale winning four, drawing two and losing five of his 11 Championship games at Sunderland. For context, that is identical to the side’s previous 11 league games – under Mowbray and caretaker boss Mike Dodds.
In terms of goals, Sunderland scored 13 and conceded 13 under Beale, compared to scoring 12 and conceding 12 in the 11 league games before his appointment. Yet the stats show there was a decline in Sunderland’s attacking play, with the team averaging an expected goals figure of 1.75 per game under Mowbray in the first part of the season. In the games under Beale, the Black Cats’ average XG dropped to 0.99 per game, with fans unimpressed by the style of football being served up.
