Why Aitor Karanka Is The Perfect Candidate To Take Over As Sunderland Boss
Since the sacking of Simon Grayson, Sunderland have been on the lookout for a manager to arrest their Championship slide and help them at the very least to keep their second tier status for now in order to build.
A further drop from here to League One would be utterly disastrous for the club and its owner Ellis Short, who admits they are in very serious debt and that they cannot sell. Should they drop another level, who on earth would want to buy this level of debt to inherit a football club and a business which has less and less earning potential as the years go by?
This change was vital as the team were basically in freefall, though for now the list of potential managerial replacements for Grayson makes for dismal reading.
Other than Nigel Pearson and Paul Cook, neither of whom seem to be blowing up the skirts of a still expectant fan base, the top end of the betting market for this role is a rogues gallery of old club favourites rather than top coaches with best qualifications.
Peter Reid, Stefan Schwarz, Kevin Phillips, Kevin Ball and even John O’Shea all rank highly on the list and this does not make for pleasant reading really. The only person with a decent recent history in the game, is new favourite Aitor Karanka.
Karanka, if he allows himself to be a serious contender, is not only the right man for the job but could be the ONLY man for the job. No other decent candidates have shown themselves so far and at least Karanka has very recent form when it comes to playing in the Championship.
Near neighbours and this weekend’s opponents Middlesbrough were managed out of the Championship two seasons ago by Karanka and at one stage it appeared as though he may well keep them in the Premier League for an extended stay.
That didn’t happen in the end and Karanka walked, but he would surely get Sunderland playing a much better brand of football. In the modern game, it seems like the teams with more bravery escape the relegation scrap than those teams with more desperation.
If poor football got Sunderland into this mess, then a better passing game may at least help get them out of it and it has to be worth a try.