Will Still is on Sunderland’s shortlist to replace Tony Mowbray as manager, with the 31-year-old having impressed the owner, Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, during his spell at the French club Reims.
Mowbray was sacked on Monday after 15 months in charge amid reports of a disagreement with the club’s sporting director, Kristjaan Speakman. His departure came two days after Sunderland’s 1-1 draw at Millwall, which extended their poor recent run to one win from their past five games.
Still is understood to be highly rated by Louis-Dreyfus after his success since being appointed by Reims last year and fits Sunderland’s criteria for a young emerging manager to fill the role.
He guided them to a 17-match unbeaten run in Ligue 1 last season before eventually finishing 11th, with Reims now fifth in the table and in the race for Champions League qualification.
Still was asked in May whether he would consider managing a club in the Championship. “Vincent Kompany was at Anderlecht last year and has gone into the Championship and has done an unbelievable job. I think the Championship rivals many of the top leagues in the world,” he said. “All the doors are open. I’m not closing anything at any time.”
Ipswich’s Kieran McKenna is also well regarded by Sunderland but the 37-year-old is understood to be considered unlikely to leave a promotion-chasing side and is coveted by several Premier League clubs. The Nice assistant Julien Sablé is also reportedly a contender.
Born in Belgium to English parents, Still began his managerial career at Lierse in 2017 when he was just 24 and has also managed Beerschot. His younger brother, Nicolas, is also on the coaching staff at Reims.
Mowbray took Sunderland to the Championship playoffs last season where they were eliminated by Luton in the semi-finals. The Manchester United forward Amad Diallo, who was on loan at Sunderland, was among those to pay tribute to the 60-year-old. “Thanks boss and good luck,” he posted, along with a broken-heart emoji.
