Sunderland have terminated the contract of Jack Ross amid reports that a takeover deal of the club has collapsed. Ross was appointed at Sunderland in 2018 with the aim of steering them out of League One, but they were beating 2-1 by Charlton Athletic in last season’s play-off final. They sit sixth in the table after 11 games in 2019/20.
Jack Ross Contract Terminated by Sunderland
Borrowed Time
Sunderland were always going to be an enormous fish in a tiny pond in League One after slipping down the ranks in English football. Ross, formerly of St Mirren, was the man tasked with guiding them back up, and he had a largely positive effect on Wearside.
However, too many draws saw Sunderland slip from a convincing place in the automatic promotion spots last season to barely scraping through the play-off semi-finals, before then losing in stoppage time to Lee Bowyer’s Charlton.
The same issues have been apparent this season, with Sunderland fans frustrated that the side have been unable to turn any of their four draws into wins.
There’s no indication that results have been the cause of Ross’ departure from the Stadium of Light. Instead, although unconfirmed, it can be assumed that it surrounds the potential takeover deal by MSD Partners.
Deal Off
Chronicle Live reported via the Sun shortly before the Jack Ross news was announced that a takeover deal between current owner Stuart Donald and MSD Partners was off.
The group, backed by Michael Dell – owner of Dell computers – have been trying to buy the club for a month but decided that the club was overvalued and claimed that originally discussed figures had changed.
With fresh investment, Ross could have brought in new faces to propel Sunderland towards the automatic promotion spots again. Perhaps the fall of the deal made him believe this would not be possible with the current budget.
What Now?
The Black Cats have confirmed that assistant manager James Fowler has been placed in temporary charge. He will lead the team in tonight’s (Tuesday) EFL Cup game against Grimsby Town.
The club also say that the search for a new manager will begin tomorrow.
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