The Sunderland interim boss expects to hold talks with Black Cats chiefs today and anticipates being in charge v Bristol City
Sunderland interim boss Mike Dodds expects to have a conversation with the Black Cats chiefs today about the team’s situation.
Dodds remains tight-lipped on his chances of becoming the permanent head coach but is planning for the next match.
Sunderland’s recent wins over top Championship sides have led to speculation about Dodds potentially being considered for the permanent role.
Sunderland interim boss Mike Dodds expects to have a conversation with the Black Cats chiefs today about “what the situation is and where the land lies”.
Dodds, who has led the Wearsiders to impressive victories over promotion rivals West Bromwich Albion and Leeds United since stepping up as caretaker after Tony Mowbray’s departure, remained fairly tight-lipped over whether he was in the running for the permanent job but revealed he is planning as if he will be in charge for the trip to Bristol City on Saturday.
Sunderland redemption for Mike Dodds
Jobe Bellingham’s second half header proved decisive at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday evening to hand Sunderland a deserved win over top-two chasers Leeds.
The hosts were happy to sit deep and frustrate the Whites but poured numbers forward when the opportunity arose and got their goal 12 minutes from time to secure the three points.
Sunderland have now won back-to-back games against teams above them in the table after a 2-1 victory over West Brom on Saturday – bringing some redemption for Dodds, who lost to Doncaster Rovers and Cheltenham Town in his last spell as interim boss in February 2022.
Mike Dodds as Sunderland caretaker boss as per Transfermarkt (13/12)
The 37-year-old has been at the North East club since the summer of 2021, leaving Birmingham City after 12 years there as a coach to become the Black Cats’ head of individual player development.
Mike Dodds: “I’ll have a conversation”
The upturn in form since Mowbray’s departure and the manner in which Sunderland have beaten two top Championship sides has led to natural speculation about whether Dodds could come into the club’s thinking for the permanent head coach role.
Speaking to The Northern Echo after the game, Dodds refused to be drawn on whether he believed he was being considered.
He said: “From my perspective, and I want to be respectful to the question, it’s been an absolute whirlwind seven or eight days.
“I need a day off tomorrow because I’ve put so much mental thought into it. The staff must be sick of me in terms of the amount of analysis we do and detail we go into. I think the players need a break from me because I think at times I might be overly intense with them.
“I need a mental reset to make sure I’m ready to go for Thursday and Friday. I’ll keep doing the planning and preparation as I’ve done for the last 15 months and I’ll continue to do that for as long as the club want me to do it.”
Dodds revealed that he expected to hold talks with the Sunderland chiefs today.
“At the moment I do,” he said when asked if he anticipated being in charge for the City game this weekend. “My focus has just been on the game. I’m sure I’ll have a conversation at some point tomorrow with the people above me to find out what the situation is and where the land lies.”
But still he remained tight-lipped on whether he had eyes on the top job.
“My answer is going to be the same, I’ve not had enough time to process what has happened,” Dodds explained.
“It’s been a whirlwind from Tuesday onwards. I knew how hard these games would be and how much effort I’d have to put in in terms of making sure the team was prepared.
“I have a day off tomorrow and I’m absolutely buzzing. I’m going to spend the day Christmas shopping and I’m going to try and switch off. Then Thursday will be business as usual trying to prepare for Saturday.
“As I said from the outset, whether there was a head coach here or not, I like to try and plan three or four games in advance and that’s still the case. The preparations for Bristol are in place and behind the scenes we’ll start preparing for Coventry a week on Saturday.”
Will Still among the other candidates in the running
Sunderland’s approach to replacing Mowbray has been fairly clear with a host of young, up-and-coming coaches linked with the job.
Will Still
Will Still, who has impressed with his work at Ligue 1 club Reims, has reportedly held positive talks with Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and is considering taking charge of the Black Cats amid rumours of disagreements with his current club over transfers.
After catching the eye by defying the odds in Sweden with Värnamo, Kim Hellberg had also been linked but, according to The Guardian, is now expected to take charge of Hammarby as the replacement for QPR boss Marti Cifuentes.
As for Dodds, you do feel that were Still to opt against taking charge at Sunderland then he should be under serious consideration for the job.
The 37-year-old has plenty of experience developing young players, having brought through the Bellingham brothers and Demarai Gray among others before moving to Sunderland, and has proven his tactical nous over the past week.
If nothing else, Dodds could be a stopgap, perhaps until the end of the season, that allows the Black Cats to be patient in finding their permanent solution.
