Poyet points to consistency as key to success
FORMER Chelsea and Spurs icon Gus Poyet enjoyed a fantastic time as Sunderland boss and reckons he could return to the club one day.
Now 56, the ex-black Cats manager – in charge between 2013 and 2015 – was speaking to freebets. com (www.freebets.com) and was asked whether he would be interested in the head coach role at the Stadium of Light.
He said: “I am always in contact with Sunderland. Everybody knows one of the owners is Juan Sartori from Uruguay and we are very close.
“We speak monthly, so I have been in contact over the last three months. It’s something that will happen. When? It depends on many things, but it’s nice that after you leave a place, a few years later they go back and think, ‘maybe it wasn’t that bad, maybe we had a good time with him.’
“I loved my time at Sunderland, it brought me such huge highs. Doing what we did together, that miracle salvation.
“On top of that, when you’re the manager of Sunderland and beat Newcastle the three games that you play, that’s it, it doesn’t matter, you get such love from the fans. I’ll always be attached to Sunderland, not just for what we did, but also because of the owners.”
He added: “My contract with Greece ended on 31st of March, whether we qualified for the Euros or not so I’m free to talk to people.
“I’ve had calls from South America, I said at this point in my career I wouldn’t want to coach in South
America, if I don’t have a job in two years, maybe I would go, but right now I would prefer, if possible, to stay within Europe.”
Poyet was also asked, bearing in mind he knows the owners, what his thoughts are on last season and what needs to happen next? “It’s clear what the project is,” he said.
“It’s clear what the owners are trying to achieve. They have the specific recruitment on top, talented young players, trying to play a certain type of football. The previous season they came very close with Tony Mowbray.
“This season has been a bit up and down. I think the summer is key. The best example is Ipswich. The easiest way [often not possible], is through money. Be like Man City, Real Madrid, buy the best.
“The other way is to be like Brighton or Ipswich. You create something, you believe and if you’re good enough, you achieve it.
“Sunderland has great young players but will need to commit to one approach, at the minute they’re in between the two approaches above.
“I love young players, they give you something, their ability to learn and take on coaching, their stamina, they want to play but sometimes they’re a bit up and down and an older player is more consistent. Normally a good mix gives you a better chance.”
He concluded: “I think if somebody leaves, they need to replace them. Consistency. It’s very important that the understanding of the football remains the same no matter who comes in. If not, the players lose momentum. Sunderland need consistency, in the Championship as you get consistency, you’re going to be up there. From 10th to 6th can sometimes be a matter of three or four points.
“The teams in the play-offs right now are recent Premier League teams. That shows how difficult it can be for the rest of the league. We thought Hull, Cardiff, Watford could have been up there not too long ago, but it’s the consistency that gets you up.”