After a less than convincing start to the 2015/16 campaign for Dick Advocaat and his struggling Black Cats outfit, Sunderland once again face the rest of the season with a new manager at the helm now that former Bolton, Newcastle and West Ham boss, Sam Allardyce, has finally been drafted in.
It was a move that quite frankly, many saw coming. Given Advocaat’s age and lack of experience among the English top flight, the Dutchman seemingly wasn’t going to last long at the Stadium of Light with all things considered – even if his side had in-fact begun their league duties with a great deal more conviction this term.
As Big Sam defiantly maintains his reputation as someone who knows how to avoid the threat of relegation from the Premier League, Allardyce ultimately seems like the right man for the job at this stage in the proceedings. His prior experience as a Sunderland player should also hold him in decent stead among the Black Cats faithful.
So then, in light of yet another high profile managerial change for the Premier League club, will the ex-Trotters favourite eventually work wonders at the Stadium of Light during his spell in the North East, or is the appointment of Sam Allardyce simply prolonging the inevitable for Sunderland in 2015/16?
Well, after parting ways with each of Martin O’Neill, Paolo Di Canio, Gus Poyet and Dick Advocaat in such a brief amount of time, it really is no surprise that Sunderland remain in their current plight. The club have failed to achieve any form of consistency over the last couple of seasons, the team have become notorious for making calamitous errors at the back whilst defending their own goal, and the results have been a far cry from successful as well.
In deciding against sticking with a manager as fiery and as seemingly controversial as Di Canio, Sunderland have shown themselves to be somewhat scared of uprooting their current philosophy behind the scenes, and replacing it with a fresh set of ideas. With the appointment of Sam Allardyce however, such a transformation isn’t likely to take place any time soon.
Fans of the Black Cats will see their side prioritize the long-balls up to a solitary and often isolated frontman, the overall style of play employed by Allardyce will not be well received among the wider English footballing community in general, with maverick type players largely being out-casted in favour of more traditional options out on the pitch. All of which may seem like a strikingly clichéd way of describing the Big Sam approach – but such an analysis will nevertheless ring true in the cold light of day.
In the end, Sam Allardyce arguably won’t turn Sunderland into much of an exciting outfit by any stretch of the imagination. However, because avoiding relegation is understandably the biggest concern surrounding the Stadium of Light at the moment, he will likely prove a success in the North East one way or another. Big Sam has already had an influence over his side's previously shaky back-line, with Sunderland only narrowly being defeated by West Brom last time out of course.
It was a match that ultimately doesn't look too promising for Sunderland in terms of their current position in the league table, but also a game in which the Black Cats strived for a great deal more organisation across the defence. For that, both the team and Sam Allardyce in particular deserve credit. His side's have always been well drilled, hard to break down and physically strong throughout the years – and that is just the kind of approach Sunderland need to embody right now in order to avoid further embarrassment.
Therefore, whilst Big Sam’s teams hardly manage to score a great deal of goals or prove the source of much entertainment for fans of the Premier League in general to enjoy, all the signs seem to point to Sunderland maintaining their place among the English top-flight with the former Hammers boss in place. Black Cats fans will now see what their side a truly made of as the relegation dog-fight continues for 2015/16…
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