Sunderland look set to appoint Regis Le Bris as their new manager, and he looks to have his first backroom staff member lined up.
Sunderland are reportedly closing in on the appointment of Lorient boss Regis Le Bris, following a four-month spell without a permanent manager in place.
Le Bris is tipped to leave Lorient following their relegation from Ligue 1 last season, after a two-year spell in charge of the French outfit.
Fabrizio Romano revealed on Friday that a deal was in place for Le Bris to replace Michael Beale with the Black Cats hoping to make an announcement over the weekend.
Le Bris’ arrival at the Stadium of Light will bring an end to what’s been an arduous and drawn-out search for the club’s next manager.
And it looks as though Le Bris already has his first backroom appointment at Sunderland lined up.
Regis Le Bris set to hire Ingo Goetze at Sunderland
It has been revealed that Le Bris is set to bring Lorient no.2 Igno Goetze with him to Sunderland this summer.
Goetze, 45, started his career working in youth football in Germany before turning his attention towards sports psychology.
The German has worked within the youth ranks at Werder Bremen, Stuttgart, and Bayer Leverkusen, before arriving at Lorient as assistant manager to Le Bris in 2022.
Journalist Graham Falk posted on X:
Why Igno Goetze could be crucial for Regis Le Bris as next Sunderland manager
For Le Bris, arriving in a new country as a still quite inexperienced manager, taking on a very difficult job, he’ll want someone behind him who he can trust.
Although he’s only worked with Goetze for a couple of years, it seems clear that he’s someone who he favours, given the fact that he wants to bring him to Wearside with him.
And Goetze’s background as a sports psychologist could add something new to the Sunderland backroom team, especially given the amount of young players and the pressure that they’re currently under.
A trusted ally was something that Beale didn’t have at Sunderland. Sporting director Kristjaan Speakman may recognise that as one of several pitfalls for the former Sunderland boss, so Le Bris bringing in his own staff can only be a positive for him.
There’s expected to be more changes to the backroom team and to the playing staff this summer, in what could be a very positive summer of change at Sunderland.
But the Black Cats are currently behind in their preparations given the lengthy search process for a new manager, so the club really needs to press on once Le Bris is announced.