Football Musings

When England crashed out of Euro 2016 embarrassingly against Iceland, little did Sunderland know they would be caught in the crossfires of the fallout of the Three Lions’ failure in France. With Roy Hodgson’s resignation, Sam Allardyce was installed as the overwhelming favourite for the gig, an interview was arranged and in the end England got their man, Sam Allardyce was appointed as the new national team manager - the worst kept secret in football became official. Allardyce who had no point hid his desire to take over from Hodgson left Sunderland, and a club who survived relegation by the skin of their teeth last term, were plunged into disarray that was in no way of their own making.

“The ongoing speculation over Sam’s position is extremely damaging to Sunderland AFC, particularly at this crucial time of the season and we urge the FA to respect the disruption that this process is causing and bring about a swift resolution to the matter,” read a club statement from Sunderland on July 13.

In a summer that was supposed to be for consolidating the core of the squad to build something more cohesive and prevent another year of fighting relegation, Sunderland had their manager taken away from them on short notice; a club where constant flux reigns supreme forced into making a change they never wanted to. But instead of wasting precious little time, the club acted swiftly, held talks with David Moyes and by Saturday morning, less than 24 hours after Allardyce’s appointment as England manager, Moyes was officially announced. And, in Moyes, a club notorious for poor decisions hit the nail on the head. Moyes is the right man for Sunderland.

Ellis Short, the Sunderland chairman, has appointed seven managers in the past five years, which underlines the instability that currently engulfs the club. The constant cycle of a winter of discontent followed by redemption in spring was manageable enough as long as it kept the club in the Premier League, but supporters, understandably, wanted more. No longer was it enough to just make up the numbers in the league when the club could establish itself comfortably in the division, heavyweights of the mid-table, if you will, potentially flirting with European football. The club hoped Allardyce would be the man to lead them into this brave new era, but with him gone, Sunderland’s goals are still achievable with Moyes in charge.

Short is a long-time admirer of Moyes, and therefore it is of no surprise to see the Scot appointed. Moyes, however, comes to the North East with a reputation that has taken some battering in the past three years. Perhaps, understandably, people are questioning the wisdom of hiring a man who has been sacked in his last three jobs after series of underwhelming performances. Moyes, one suspects, still curses the day he swapped the cozy surroundings of Everton for the most unforgiving job ever in football: replacing Sir Alex Ferguson. Real Sociedad was also a disaster, and his inability to communicate with his players in Spanish made his tenure untenable.

But simply discrediting Moyes solely on the evidence of the past three years is to dismiss the quality of his work of 15 years in charge of Preston North End and Everton.

At Preston, Moyes took charge of a club flirting with relegation in Division Two, and in three years, he took them to within a playoff final loss of reaching the Premier League against Bolton Wanderers managed by a certain Allardyce.

It is Moyes’ 11 years at Everton, however, that should give Sunderland fans the most cause for optimism. If the Black Cats are seeking a man capable of making them to punch above their category, then they have found their man.

At Everton, Moyes turned around the fortunes of a club – and this may sound familiar Sunderland fans – that was mired in a relegation dogfight prior to his arrival and moulded them into a solid Premier League outfit, the best of the pack flailing in the shadows of the division’s moneyed elites. Roberto Martinez’s first season at Merseyside made many to believe Moyes genuinely held the club back, that there was no ceiling to what could be achieved, despite what many perceived to be Moyes constantly downplaying expectations for his own benefit. Perhaps Moyes could have indeed taken Everton higher, but to accuse him of holding Everton back is insincere and evaluate his time at the club without context.

The Premier League of today is a different beast compared to the competition Moyes worked in with Everton. Everton under Moyes were hamstrung by a lack of resources compared to the financial strength boasted by the original Top Four, and latterly, Manchester City after the Thaksin Shinawatra takeover. Moyes made do with the meagre resources afforded him to oversee 11 seasons of solid, if unspectacular progress. Undeniably, the football under Moyes was at times tepid and uninspiring, but Everton were hard to beat, and despite Leicester City becoming the flavour of the month now, it must not be lost that the Toffees were the first to break the top four hegemony back in 2005 when they finished above their city rivals. The Scot also had an excellent record of getting bargain signings: Nigel Martyn, Joseph Yobo, Marouane Fellaini, Tim Cahill, Seamus Coleman, Sylvain Distain, and many others were all at various points integral members of Moyes’ Everton dynasty.

In a way, Sunderland and Moyes is the perfect combination, the marriage of a club in need of an experienced head to give it continuity and long-term direction, and a manager desperate to re-build his reputation after an unfortunate three-year spell that has threatened to erode the memories of his abilities as a capable manager. Fortunately for them, the Premier League is a slightly more egalitarian competition as the new TV deal has somewhat levelled the field to ensure clubs of Sunderland’s stature are capable to bring in quality additions from home and abroad.

The task before Moyes now is to strengthen his playing squad in readiness for the new season, and the obvious place to start is the permanent signing of Yann M’Vila, a right-back and a striker to partner Jermain Defoe.

Allardyce’s departure may have threatened to derail Sunderland’s plans, but an effectiveness hitherto unassociated with the Sunderland board has seen them bring in the best available manager on the market for the vacant role. Moyes and Sunderland are a perfect fit, regardless of what the naysayers claim.