Simon Grayson has suggested that the Sunderland job could be too ‘difficult’ for a lot of managers.
Simon Grayson was sacked with Sunderland 23rd in the Championship six-and-a-half years ago, while there has been seven permanent managers since.
The 54-year-old was one of many coaches who has found the job on Wearside too challenging, but the task at hand now is a different one to the one that was placed upon him in 2017.
The Black Cats have a long list of quality players at theStadium of Light and will be expected to win promotion back to the Premier League in the coming years, despite enduring seven games without a win under Mike Dodds.
It is a challenge that Tony Mowbray already came so close to achieving after reaching the play-offs last season. However, Grayson believes the demands at Sunderland are too ‘difficult’ for many managers.
Speaking to Football League World, the former Black Cats coach said: “It’s a big club, huge expectancy levels from everyone because they do demand that they’re challenging for honours – whether it’s in the Championship or the Premier League.
“It’s one of those clubs that have those demands and that’s why it is such a difficult job, but it’s such an inviting job for so many people because of the size and prestige of managing a club like Sunderland.
“It will be interesting how the rest of the season pans out but also how it goes further forward in the summer.”
What do Sunderland demand of their manager?
The Sunderland vacancy was a much harder role to take on during our last stint in the Championship, given our disastrous ownership and squad that consisted of the likes of James Vaughan, Jack Rodwell and Donald Love.
However, the current job is a lot more intriguing. We have so much talent and quality to work with, while we are guaranteed a bit of extra cash to spend following the impending exit of Jack Clarke.
If there as a manager who has proven success with young players, then it could be a very attractive opportunity for them.
The high demands that Grayson speaks of aren’t really there. We never really demanded much of Mowbray and we didn’t expect to go straight up this year either, we just wanted some effort and clear direction of where we were heading.
The only problem that a manager could face is that they wouldn’t be in control of transfers, but if they are accepting of that, then it is a job with a lot of potential.