MOYES: WE’VE NO HIDING PLACE!
CATS BOSS ACCEPTS CRITICISM BUT SAYS HONEST APPROACH IS APPRECIATED BY FANS
David Moyes thinks Sunderland fans recognise the need for stability, but acknowledges that criticism is inevitable given the team’s wretched Premier League position.
The Black Cats are the only side in the bottom six not to change their manager this season, after Middlesbrough parted company with Aitor Karanka shortly before the international break.
Ellis Short’s presence at the 0-0 draw with Burnley led to inevitable speculation about the manager’s position, but the Scot remains firmly in place.
The bleak Premier League picture, with 10 games to go, has significantly increased fan unrest and disillusionment,
something Moyes knows is inevitable.
He said: “I think Sunderland supporters have been through it all before, and they would turn around tell you that changing manager is not the right way – the club has tried that.
“I think they have seen that it has not worked, and the club has had to look to try something else.
“But when you’re not winning, you get the criticism that goes with it.”
Sunderland have been public about their desire for long-term stability and need to turn around a financial predicament that has undermined the club in recent years.
Moyes’ comments have often been criticised and deemed negative, but the Sunderland manager thinks clarity has ultimately been a positive.
He said: “It has helped, I think. We have tried to be right up front, there has been no hiding anything.
“My comments in the first couple of weeks of the season did not go down well, but I was being honest because I didn’t think we had enough to get us away from where we were in terms of relegation battles.
“The supporters have been great, but if they weren’t then I would totally understand. I think they understand that there has to be more stability.”
Leicester City, Crystal Palace and Swansea have all benefited from a new manager bounce but Moyes hopes Karanka’s departure can help Sunderland’s cause.
He said: “I would hope so. It doesn’t always, but nor is there a rule that the manager who comes in always makes a difference in the long-term, eventhoughsometimesitcan give you a short-term boost.”
Claudio Ranieri has admitted that his dismissal as Leicester manager came as a huge shock.
The 65-year-old Italian was removed from his post in February, nine months after leading the Foxes to an amazing Premier League title.
Ranieri has kept a low profile since, but appeared this week in his homeland in a ceremony to honour regional football coaches in Italy.
He revealed his astonishment at being told of his sacking, the day after Leicester’s first-leg defeat to Sevilla in the Champions League last 16 – a tie they eventually went on to win. “Thinking of Leicester, the first thing that comes to mind is the sense of surprise, even more than bitterness,” said Ranieri.
“I have been through a lot in my long career, but never anything like this. It was a shock.”
Ranieri will speak in more detail when he appears as a pundit on Sky at the Crystal Palace-Arsenal game on April 10. “Until that day I will not talk,” he said. “Because everything took place in England and it seems fitting to talk in England.”