CATS AND SLOGS
Pienaar: Moyes WILL keep us safe.. but it WON’T be pretty
STEVEN PIENAAR has told worried Sunderland fans to trust in David Moyes.
But he has joined the Black Cats boss in warning that it may not be pretty this season as the Scot puts his stamp on Wearside.
Recent arrival Pienaar jumped at the chance to link up again with Moyes, who he played under for six seasons at Everton.
He insisted: “David’s definitely the man to get it right here.
“He’s only come into Sunderland in the middle of pre-season and he’s still getting used to the players. Having worked with him, I know he’s a safe pair of hands, capable of building strong foundations.”
Moyes pulled no punches in predicting a fifth consecutive fight for Premier League survival after suffering back-to-back defeats in his first two Premier League games in charge.
But the midweek EFL Cup win over Shrewsbury lifted spirits, as did the arrival of Javier Manquillo.
The Spanish defender is the sixth signing of Moyes’ fledgling reign, after joining on a seasonlong loan from Atletico Madrid.
Pienaar, who made his first Sunderland start as the Shrews were beaten 1-0, added: “The manager wants to instill confidence in the players and he wants us to just go out and enjoy our football.
“There are a lot of young players here, so it will be hard – but we will make progress.”
The 34-year-old South African midfielder feared being abandoned on the Premier League scrapheap when he left Everton at the end of last season.
He added: “I thought my topflight career was over in this country, I thought that was it.
“I was back in South Africa. My agent made the call as soon as the manager got the job at Sunderland and he asked if I could come and train to keep fit. I have taken it from there.
“I have got some great memories of working with David – he instilled a lot into me as a player and we had some terrific years at Everton.”