Jack Ross isn't a name that would have been widely known south of the border up until a week or so ago. The 41 year old St Mirren manager has been linked with a succession of Championship clubs since the end of the season including Ipswich and Derby, but it wasn't until Wednesday that it looked as though Sunderland have their man.
Rumours are that Ross will be earning five times the amount he was earning at St Mirren Park, a club where he guided the Buddies to a Championship this season and pipped Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers to the SFA Manager of the Year award. He can thank his fellow Scottish managers if the rumours are true!
Ross joined St Mirren after a spell at Alloa Athletic that saw then have a 38% win rate from 34 games, despite being relegated from the Championship.
His record at St Mirren reads:
- 80 games managed - 40 wins - 13 drawn - 25 lost (Source: TheSackrace)
That's a hugely impressive 53% win rate at a team with limited resources.
The style of Ross's teams will be like music to the ears of Sunderland fans who have endured a torrid couple of years, sliding out of the Premier League and down into League One.
St Mirren scored 63 goals on their way to Championship glory last season, winning the league by an impressive 12 points. Ross likes to play a 4-3-2-1 formation that can easily adapted to a 4-3-3 and Sunderland must think he's the man that can get them straight back up into the Championship.
Despite successive relegations and a string of failed managers at the Stadium Of Light, there's reasons to be optimistic for the Mackems, with a new ownership and a fresh start. The club's new owner Stewart Donald revealed on TalkSport on Wednesday morning that he had agreed terms with a new manager and said he was excited to get the deal done. The noises from St Mirren were that this wasn't the case, although by Wednesday afternoon the club released a statement saying they had reluctantly accepted an offer from Sunderland.
Can Jack Ross propel Sunderland back to the Championship at the first time of asking?
It's a calculated risk. On the one hand the club can be applauded at not going down the route of getting an experienced 'name' in on big wages when their record isn't actually that good. Ross was highly sought after with Ipswich and Derby also interested in the Scot's services.
He doesn't have League One experience but at least he arrives in the North East off the back of some positive energy following the sale of the club. You might argue that it may still be a turbulent time, Donald went through eight managers in three years as the owner of Eastleigh FC, so although Ross will be afforded time by the fantastic supporters in Sunderland, the same can't be guaranteed of the new owner.