ADVOCAAT PLOTS WEARSIDE STAY

DICK ADVOCAAT could remain in charge of Sunderland next season after admitting for the first time that talks are planned over his future. The former Rangers manager met with owner Ellis Short this week and the American billionaire expressed his delight with the recent revival. Sunderland have won three from six since Advocaat’s arrival and are now two points clear of danger ahead of today’s visit of relegation rivals Leicester City. The 67-year-old has previously refused to talk about extending his stay beyond the end of the campaign, joking in the wake of last weekend’s 2-0 win at Everton that his wife would divorce him were he to sign a longer-term deal. But Advocaat (right) is clearly enjoying his first experience of the Premier League and, with the club hierarchy impressed with his impact, the chances of him being installed on a permanent basis are becoming increasingly likely. When asked if discussions were scheduled over the possibility of staying on as head coach, Advocaat said: ‘I think so, yes. I can’t say much about it, because we’ll have to see what happens in the next 14 days. It’s definitely the case that I enjoy it here. We’re really enjoying what we’re doing. ‘I realise there’s a lot to do with this club, but the main priority is that the club has to stay up and then making sure it has the right set-up for next season. But I have ideas, a lot of ideas.’ Advocaat added: ‘The owner was here on Monday and he talked about the potential of the club as well. ‘He was very excited. He hopes in the future he can watch Sunderland more in the top half of the table rather than the bottom half.’ Meanwhile, Sebastian Larsson — the club’s player of the season — has also called for a summer inquest into Sunderland’s perennial struggle at the wrong end of the table. The Swedish international is frustrated that the past three seasons have seen them fight against relegation to the Championship. ‘It has been like this for too many seasons now,’ he said. ‘I’m sick of relegation battles. ‘But first of all we need to make sure we stay in the Premier League. Then, the players, whoever the manager is and the people higher up the club need to have a good look at what needs to be done. ‘The way we do it is collectively. We have to come up with a solution and think about where we go from here.’