Sunderland turn to Dutch manager after sacking Gus Poyet Dick Advocaat has achieved his long standing ambition to manage in the Premier League after being appointed Sunderland’s head coach until the end of the season.The much-travelled 67-year-old former Holland manager replaces the sacked Gus Poyet for a nine-game sojourn in which Sunderland trust he will keep the struggling team out of the Championship.
Although Lee Congerton, Sunderland’s sporting director, had not met Advocaat until the Dutchman’s arrival from Holland on Monday night he was advised to hire him by Frank Arnesen, the former Chelsea director of football.
With others in football, including Sir Alex Ferguson and Carlo Ancelotti, singing Advocaat’s praises, Sunderland acted fast to install the former Rangers coach in time to work with the players before Saturday’s trip to West Ham. They will kick off with only one point separating them from the bottom three. After that he has the international break to prepare for the all-important home game against Newcastle United on Easter Sunday.
“Sunderland is a big club and I’m very much looking forward to the challenge ahead,” said Advocaat. “I can’t wait to get started. We must now concentrate on Saturday as a priority.”
Ellis Short, Sunderland’s chairman, was equally enthusiastic: “Dick has an incredible CV and vast experience of managing at the very highest level. We have one aim only now – to climb the table and everyone is fully focused on the task ahead of us.”
Advocaat will be joined at the Stadium of Light by Zeljko Petrovic, his long-term sidekick and a former assistant to Avram Grant at West Ham. While Petrovic becomes first-team coach, local knowledge will be provided by Paul Bracewell, the former Sunderland midfielder currently coaching in the academy.
Bracewell will spend the rest of the season working alongside Advocaat and Petrovic with Adrian Tucker, the former Swansea and England Under-20 goalkeeping coach, also joining the re-shaped backroom.
It is understood, however, that the former England manager Steve McClaren remains the club’s favoured long-term target.
Advocaat began his managerial career in his native Holland where he enjoyed domestic success with assorted clubs before coaching Holland. Later he moved to Scotland, guiding Rangers to five trophies during his four years at Ibrox, before returning to the Holland national team set-up in 2002.
Spells with United Arab Emirates and South Korea were followed by three years in Russia with Zenit St Petersburg, where he won the Russian League and Cup as well as the Uefa Cup and the Uefa Super Cup in 2008.
Advocaat then coached the Belgium and Russia national teams as well as the Dutch clubs AZ Alkmaar and PSV before taking charge of the Serbia national side, a post he resigned last November.
He fits Sunderland’s job description of an experienced, gifted coach, hungry for a fresh challenge but not looking for a long-term posting. The club have made it clear his is an interim appointment only with a more permanent head coach set to be hired in the summer but see Advocaat as an ideal fire fighter.
By Louise Taylor / Guardian
