It's almost 100 days since Sunderland parted company with Michael Beale with a new head coach still to be named, despite almost three weeks since the end of the 2023-24 Championship campaign. 

Sunderland have been locked in a thorough process to identify their potential candidates but have now seen a number of moves which may have impacted their search in recent days with some of those candidates now becoming unavailable. 

Will Still, Danny Rohl, Paul Heckingbottom, Rene Maric and Bo Svensson have all been linked with a move to the Stadium of Light in recent weeks and months, with former Hull City boss Liam Rosenior also being credited with tentative links to Wearside. But developments this week have now seen Rohl and Svensson off the market while doubts over Maric have also become clear given the impending change of head coach at Bayern Munich. 

Rohl, having masterminded Sheffield Wednesday's Championship survival with a 2-0 win at the Stadium of Light on the final day of the season, has now agreed a new long-term contract with the Hillsborough club after a period of negotiations with Wednesday owner Dejphon Chansiri, with the German now fixated on an improved season with the Owls away from relegation trouble. 

Likewise, Danish head coach Svensson is also now off the market after he was confirmed as the new head coach of Union Berlin. Svensson had been out of work since leaving Mainz in November and emerged as a late candidate for the Sunderland vacancy earlier this month but the 44-year-old will now remain in Germany.

 

 

Meanwhile Still, who was held in high regard by the club in December when at Stade de Reims, is understood to have held talks with Norwich City with Sunderland now facing competition for the 31-year-old if he is their chosen candidate while Heckingbottom has been linked with the Plymouth Argyle vacancy.

What does this mean for Sunderland? Joe Ramage and Dom Shaw discuss the latest developments in Sunderland's head coach search in the latest We Are Sunderland briefing as well as looking ahead to Sunderland under-21s' Premier League 2 play-off final with Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

You can view the latest We Are Sunderland briefing below our via our YouTube channel.

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