Former Sunderland left-back Michael Gray believes that problems at Sunderland run much deeper than with the manager, urging the club to stick with Dick Advocaat in search of stability.
Speaking with The Chronicle, Gray believes that in order to survive, Sunderland must keep the faith with Advocaat, doing away with the “hire and fire” policy of recent years.
Gray said: ““I think we’ve got to stop pointing the finger at managers, I really do, because it can’t be every manager’s fault at the football club. It just can’t.”
He went on to say “I think the finger needs to be pointed somewhere else”, hinting that the problem may lie with more senior members of the football club, rather than the manager himself.
This comes after recent years in which Sunderland have been through a number of managers, most recently Gus Poyet and Paulo Di Canio, and Gray believes that the club cannot continue like this if they are to have long-term success as a Premier League side.
Although only contracted until the end of the season, Gray thinks that Sunderland should stick with Dick Advocaat, saying “I still believe, although he’s only staying for a season, that he’s the right guy to get Sunderland out of this mess.”
Advocaat is still the bookies favourite to win this season’s sack race, and with a difficult tie against in-form West Ham at the weekend, it remains to be seen how much longer the Dutchman will last on Wearside.
