Sunderland appear to have found their new manager, with the club in advanced talks with Lorient boss Regis Le Bris, according to journalist Sacha Tavolieri.
It’s been over four months since the Black Cats parted ways with Michael Beale, sparking one of the longest and most frustrating manager searches in recent memory.
Will Still looked to be coming until he didn’t, whilst former Hull City manager Liam Rosenior nipped things in the bud before anything got too serious between the pair, to name just two of the candidates Sunderland had identified, only to see them slip through their fingers for various reasons.
They’ll be hoping that good things come to those who wait, as they appear to have finally found their new manager, although Sunderland fans will probably not be counting their chickens until it’s officially announced.
Le Bris presents as a big Black Cats gamble
Taking up your first managerial job in English football is never an easy task for a manager, and it will only be made more difficult if in your only job to date in senior football management, you experienced relegation.
Well, that’s precisely what 48-year-old Le Bris has endured, having seen his Lorient side fall out of Ligue 1 in four seasons, finishing in 17th place with just seven wins during the campaign.
Not exactly an emulation of the exploits of the aforementioned Still and his Reims side, but are there more positive signs for Sunderland fans to hold onto if you look deep enough?
To some degree, yes. Lorient scored 43 goals in Ligue 1 last season, three more than fifth-placed Nice, and one more than ninth-placed Reims, with their 1.3 goals scored per match the ninth best in Ligue 1 in 2023/24.
Scoring goals was not the issue last season, and would suggest that if the Black Cats can make some quality additions to their forward line this summer, Le Bris could get a lot out of them.
Instead, it was their inability to stop them from going in at the other end, that ultimately saw the club finish where they did.
Lorient’s 66 goals conceded was the most in the entire French top-flight, with their 1.9 goals conceded per match also being the worst record of any club last season – per FotMob.
