HOT FOOTBALL GOSSIP: Liverpool, Sunderland, Chelsea, Newcastle manager latest

While Jurgen Klopp is running straight into the arms of Liverpool after they dumped Brendan Rodgers, Sunderland are having a bit more trouble attracting a new soulmate. The former Borussia Dortmund coach is said to be enchanted by the “romance” of managing the Reds, reports the Independent. Meanwhile, Sunderland appear to be lunging for any manager with a pulse as they aim to fill the Dick-shaped hole left by Advocaat’s resignation.

Former Black Cats striker Dwight Yorke told Talksport he is “amazed” by the lack of interest in the Stadium of Light hotseat, but it’s probably hard for the Tobagonian to understand that not everyone has his sex appeal. David Moyes, Sam Allardyce and Sean Dyche have already politely fended off advances from the Black Cats, reports the Daily Mail, and the latest gaffer to rule himself out is Harry Redknapp. The former QPR boss described the Wearsiders as “horrendous” and said there is “no chance” of him taking the job, which to be to fair to Sunderland is mainly because they haven’t offered it to him.

One man who is in the frame is ostrich-hating, player-strangling former Leicester manager Nigel Pearson, who the Telegraphs says has been approached - cautiously, one presumes - by the club’s sporting director Lee Congerton, who sounds a bit like a lazy alter ego devised by Lee Cattermole in a bid to personally pick his next manager.

The Sunderland Echo says Pearson’s chances of landing the job are “remote”, although he remains on a list of targets compiled by “Congerton” (it’s basically Cattermole wearing sunglasses and putting on a posh accent).

Another man who has “emerged as a contender” for the role is former USA coach Bob Bradley, who according to the Express has “let the Sunderland hierarchy know he is interested”.

Meanwhile, Roy Keane says Sunderland could have avoided this mess if they had kept him, claiming in the Irish Examiner that he would still be in charge if club chiefs had “left him alone”. Which might be true, but then they might also be in League One.

One boss who is unlikely to become available to lead the Black Cats to safety is Jose Mourinho, whom the Daily Star claims it would cost Chelsea £37.5m in compensation to sack. That’s almost as much as it cost to sign Juan Cuadrado and Mohamed Salah.

Maybe Congerton’s best option is to wait for Steve McClaren to become available. It won’t be long according to Newcastle legend Micky Quinn, who predicts in the Chronicle that the Magpies boss has “two or three games” to save his job. One of those is against Sunderland - could be interesting.

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