Sunderland have been sent an eye-opening warning about manager target Will Still.
Sunderland were handed a huge potential boost in their managerial hunt when long-term target Still, 31, left French Ligue 1 side Reims at the start of May.
Still was wanted by Sunderland after the club sacked Tony Mowbray, and he reportedly spoke to club officials before Michael Beale was brought in.
Reims’ hefty compensation fee for Still was thought to be a deterrent for the Black Cats, but Still is now a free agent.
Sunderland owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus is yet to pull the trigger on a move for Still but it’s thought that he remains a person of interest at the Stadium of Light.
There’s other names linked though, and Louis-Dreyfus may take heed of emerging comments from Reims president Jean-Pierre Caillot.
Jean-Pierre Caillot fires Sunderland warning over Will Still
Speaking to French media, Reims president Caillot has opened up on the 2023/24 season and the fallout with former manager Still.
The Belgian-English coach initially took charge in October 2022, going on to oversee 65 games with a win rate of 38.46%.
He left the club in 11th place of the Ligue table following a run of three-straight defeats. Last season, Still lead Reims on a 19-game unbeaten run.
Caillot previously said that, since Still had been linked with Sunderland, running the club had become a ‘nightmare’.
Caillot told France Bleu: “Will Still, it’s a very beautiful story, a very beautiful meeting. He matched the profile we wanted. But then, it’s a bit of a risk when you take on young people.
“Here, at Stade de Reims, we give young people a chance at all levels, whether players or staff, and when we have young people, we have to accept at times that they make mistakes.
“I think that the ‘Will Still effect’ meant that there were a lot of communications from him, a lot of requests.
“A more experienced coach would have protected himself more, and he went from being a nice guy with a fresh air, to someone who was a little lost in his communication and this was felt in his management of the team.”
Sunderland could repeat costly mistake with Will Still
Caillot’s comments certainly make for interesting reading, and they make Still sound a lot like one former Sunderland manager in particular; Beale.
Caillot suggests that Still lacked communication skills which is something Beale did, and it’s something that journalist Phil Smith believes could be a key factor when Sunderland hire their next manager.
And that’s certainly something that comes with age and experience. So for the Black Cats, it opens up a caveat of potentially bringing Still to Wearside this summer.
There’s been experienced names linked with the Sunderland job including Paul Heckingbottom, though Louis-Dreyfus and sporting director Kristjaan Speakman seem determined to bring in a much more youthful coach.
There’s certainly pros and cons of potentially hiring Still and Caillot has definitely given Sunderland some food for thought here.
His Reims fall out appeared to happen very quick and arguably through the fault of Still who may well have had his head turned by interest from the likes of Sunderland.
It’ll have been a learning curve for the young coach, though whether it was enough of a learning curve to set him up for Sunderland remains to be seen.