What next for Sunderland after parting company with head coach Michael Beale?

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Sky Sports News’ Keith Downie discusses what may happen next at Sunderland after they announced they had parted company with head coach Michael Beale.

Beale oversaw only four wins in 12 games after succeeding Tony Mowbray and leaves the Black Cats 10th in the Championship, four points off the play-off positions.

The former QPR and Rangers boss’ final match in charge was the 2-1 defeat to Birmingham – Mowbray’s current club – on Saturday.

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Let’s get more now on Michael Beal who’s gone at Sunderland after just 12 games in charge nine weeks he was there Keith Downey gave us this story earlier so Keith let’s go live to him now what do we actually know about what happened yeah Vicki I mean I suppose to

The outsid this is a a big shock a surprise but I think if you follow Sunderland week in week out and you see how the supporters have responded to Michael Beal that this isn’t H he was told this morning that his Services would no longer be required as you say

Just nine weeks after taking over as head coach of course he replaced Tony mry who incidentally went on to Birmingham and led Birmingham to a win over Michael Beal Sunderland on Saturday in the in the Midland so Michael Beal I think he he felt that he would want to

Make up for what was a poor year in charge in Glasgow in charge of Rangers but it has not gone well for him at all as I say he was told uh this morning that his Services would no longer be required at the football club and that

Mike dods who was the interim manager in the spell after Tony mry left in December and before Michael Beal arrived on the 18th of December he will take over again in an interim capacity until as expected the end of the season so yeah Michael Beal I mean we see

Managers these days lasting a matter of weeks this is another one and the message uh I’m getting is that the progress that the club wanted to see on the pitch hasn’t quite been there and as a result of that Michael beel has lost his job as you say just nine weeks and

12 games after taking over of course he won four four of those 12 matches I was here just what 9 10 days ago when they won 3-1 against Plymouth played very well in the second half that day and beill looked very relaxed and happy afterwards but two defeats on the road

To Huddersfield and then Birmingham at the weekend has sealed his fate and Sunderland are looking for another head coach here at the football club look you all know Keith better than most safe to say he hasn’t really ever won the fans round so how heavily has this decision

Been in influenced by those fans do you feel yeah look I think it’s part of it I think you know you would be wrong to suggest that it wasn’t look I don’t think he’s probably done himself too many favors by results on the part perhaps one or two of the things he has

Innocently said and it hasn’t helped the supporters but look I was here at the stadium um the day he was announced there was a a massive queue of supporters round at the ticket office queueing for tickets for the the sundel in Newcastle match the first derby

Between the sides in in eight years in the FA Cup and when I was asking those supporters what they thought about the the new manager many of them were saying Michael H they didn’t actually know who he was and you know that that was poor for them I think given the fact he’d

Been manager at Rangers at QPR he’d been offered the Wolves job and and turned it down but I think very much he was on a bit of a hiding to nothing from the supporters they made their mind up about him early early on I think the only

Thing that would have saved him and given him longevity in the job would have been if he’d got off to a really good start and he’d put a lot of wins together and he had sundling up in those playoff positions I felt after the Plymouth game nine days ago that he was

Beginning to get that he was beginning to win the fans over but it’s amazing in football just how quickly things change those two defeats in the space of a few days at Huddersfield in Birmingham and it’s led to the the calls from the supporters again for him to to go and

The club have have listened to that that look I I think in many ways you can applaud the club because they could have kept this going until the end of the season it wasn’t a nice feeling between the the supporters and the club due to the fact that they weren’t happy about

His appointment but they have decided to cut their losses and go with Mike dods the inter manager until the the end of the season so look they got it wrong clearly they got it wrong because he’s only been in charge for nine weeks but they have essentially with this

Dismissal today and of course remember we’re waiting for official confirmation from the club it’s our understanding that he has gone but with this decision today they have in essence admitted that they have made a a mistake and they’ve done that quite early so it’s all look I

Think they need to be recognized for that as well absolutely and hear you saying that you know you’ve got to applaud the club for making the decision now but have they got themselves into this pickle themselves because you know 12 months ago it seemed like they were

Finally in a stable position they had Tony hob at the helm and then they sack him so it’s kind of it feels like he’s a little bit self-inflicted yeah well look the fans love Tony mry didn’t they and I think that that’s what made this really difficult for them to

Accept when Michael Beal came in because they loved Tony mry they felt that the the manager mry spoke to them as supporters and they felt that it was a real connection there they loved the football that that they played and it was a a really good fit for the job but

Things weren’t going well behind the scenes between mry and the hierarchy some of that to do with Recruitment and his inability to have any control over transfers at Sunderland the head coach Vicki essentially coaches the players and and and that’s it and tries to make them better it’s a day-to-day basis he’s not

Behind the scenes selecting players that is done by the recruitment team so they’re essentially given players to to work with that wasn’t working with Tony mry I if I’m honest felt that Michael Beal might be a good fit because he excels as as a coach and that is what he

Prides himself on and I thought that might be the thing that works for him here but as I said I feel that the supporters had made their mind up early and the only thing that was going to change that would be if he got off to a

Great start he didn’t he lost his first match here at the stadium of like 3-0 to Coventry City and although he kind of recovered a little bit I always felt that he was he was in a difficult situation where they were looking for a couple of defeats to then call for it

For his head again and look I think he’ll probably feel although he’ll be disappointed I think he’ll feel a bit relieved as well because I think he’s the strain of this has probably been difficult for him in the last couple of weeks and he’ll probably feel a little

Bit free now that he has been relieved of his duties but obviously for him two short spells in charge of Rangers and then here at Sunderland doesn’t look too good on his CV and it’ll be interesting to see where he goes next potentially he will return to to coaching and not

Remain as a number one like we’ve seen it both Rangers and and Sunderland because it’s not worth out for him so it’ll be interesting to see what Sunderland decide to to do longterm but it’s my information that Mike Dodge the interim manager will be in charge

Until the end of the season yeah and just on that if you know I was looking back and since the turn of the century I’ll read them you know them but it’s Phil Parkinson Andrew Taylor Lee Johnson Mike dods interim Alex Neil Tony mry Mike dods interim and then Michael Beal

And now Mike dods like you say till the end of the season isn’t this a club at the moment that are just crying out for just a little bit of stability are you surprised that they’re going to wait until the summer to search for the permanent replacement the reason the reason I’m

I’m smil ing their vickies because I’ve seen quite a few more come through the door here in my my 10 years covering the club and they’ve just really been been unable to get someone in who has that longevity and has that security and they

Know that they can rely on for a lot for a long time look Sunderland are a massive football club there’s 40,000 supporters coming here every week to to see them they’re the biggest supported club or one of the biggest supported clubs since the lakes of Southampton and

Leicester came down in the in the championship and they’ve got everything here to make them a Premier League Football Club so if they don’t get success straight away there will always be that pressure on a football manager at the club and that is why you’re seeing managers coming in for such a

Short spell they really like Tony mry I felt that Tony mry probably could have taken him back up to the Premier League after a couple of years but as I say things didn’t go well behind the scenes and Michael beel was given that chance it was a surprise appointment at the

Time I have to say I think a lot of their supporters wanted to see a a foreign Co brought in they were disappointed with the news when we broke that back on December the 18th that Beal would would take over and as I say he was on to a

Bit of a losing uh start after that it was really difficult for him to try and change things around and look this football club I think we’ll get back up to the the Premier League they won’t do with Michael Beal in charge and it’ll be interesting to see who the the man will

Be who will do that but you know I could go back 10 years the list is endless once I’m off this live broadcast I think I’m going to go back and count the amount of managers I’ve seen through the door here there’s been a lot over the

Last 10 years and they’re crying out for stability the fans will be hoping that the next manager gives them that stability and is the one who will eventually get them back up to the Premier League where they belong just uh before you go I think we’re hearing now

That actually um they have just confirmed it from the club but just just before I tell you that and read the quote from the club I just wanted to put you in the situation which I know is a little bit tough for you though because

You’re out there trying to do a job but you’re you’ve got your ear to ground Keith who do you think they want to see in charge at the club the supporters do you mean yeah yeah supporters if you mean yeah yeah I yeah I think the supporters would

Love someone like uh Roy Keane I think they would love a big name for years now they’ve been crying out for someone like Kevin Phillips to come in because they’ve got that pool with the football club there’s that Association they’ve been top players here I think they would

Love a big name like that but look under the current regime at the club and the way they’re they’re doing things that is not the way they want to go about it they want to bring in a a young upand cominging manager it was interesting when Tony mry was in charge because

Obviously he was the oldest manager in the championship but he’s got the youngest Squad this squad here is the youngest Squad in the English football league out of all 92 clubs so I think I think as much as they want a big name they want some who can come in and work

With these young players and look although they weren’t happy with Michael Beal to start with I I genuinely think that if he’d got off to a good start they would have change changed their mind but it was just it was such a difficult time for him to come in after

Tony mry had had done so well there’s a couple of names who were mentioned uh when Michael Beal came in in December one of them is will still who’s a young manager uh over in in Europe and I think I’ve seen his name mentioned a number of

Times in some supporters sites and I’ve heard his name mentioned when I speak to when I speak to fans so I think someone like him would would go down well at the club I think without doubt the club will be listening to the supporters now because I don’t think they did that with

An appointment of Michael Beal and they decided to go ahead with it anyway it hasn’t worked for them and look they’re back to the the drawing board again but I look I think Mike dods will be in charge until the end of the season you’ve got to remember he was given two

Games or sorry three games should I say an interim charge between mry and Bey won two of those one of them at home to leads United where they were excellent that night uh and I think he will be given it until the end of the season and Sunderland will take stock then whether

They’re in the championship or they managed to get themselves up to the playoff places and sneak into the Premier League we must wait and see but I think Mike Dodge because he did so well in that interim uh period will be afforded that chance yeah brilliant from

You as always thank you very much Keith yeah and just to uh give you more on that to I just break a few moments ago that they have confirmed it at the club this is what the sporting director Christian Speakman of sundland said we are disappointed Ed that Michael is

Leaving sundland AFC our desire is to improve and unfortunately that hasn’t been evident as such we take full accountability and feel that acting decisively is in the best interests of the club this has been a difficult few months for Michael who leaves with our best wishes for the future our Focus

They say is now on the players and supporting Mike dods in the remaining games to ensure we achieve the highest possible League finish we will be updating our supporters further as and when significant developments are made so that’s at sundland confirming that uh Michael Beal has indeed left the club today