Sunderland AFC is delighted to announce the appointment of Alex Neil as Head Coach.
The 40-year-old has agreed a rolling 12-month contract and he will be joined at the Stadium of Light by Assistant Head Coach Martin Canning.
Neil oversaw the team’s final pre-match preparations at the Academy of Light on Friday morning and will take charge of his first game on Saturday when Sunderland travel to AFC Wimbledon.
A promotion-winning player and manager, Neil enjoyed a 16-year playing career before managing Hamilton Academical to Play-Off success during his first full season at the helm.
He joined Norwich City in January 2015 and top-flight football once again beckoned, as he led the Canaries to 17 wins from 25 games and clinched promotion to the Premier League following a Play-Off Final victory over Middlesbrough at Wembley Stadium.
After leaving Carrow Road in March 2017, Neil returned to management with Preston North End ahead of the 2017-18 season and he guided the Lilywhites to what remains the club’s highest league finish since 2009 during his four-year tenure at Deepdale.
Neil said: “It is a privilege to be Head Coach of Sunderland AFC. Everything that I saw from the players this morning made me really confident and gave me belief, so what we now need to do is replicate that on a matchday – when it matters – under scrutiny and under pressure. Our task is to try and win as many games as we possibly can and at this moment in time we are focused on this season and this season alone.”
Kristjaan Speakman added: “Throughout his career, Alex has demonstrated that he can make an immediate and lasting impact. He expressed a clear vision on how he wants to take the team forward, which strongly aligns with our core principles, and we firmly believe that he can influence performances and results in the short term. We are grateful to our supporters for their patience throughout what has undoubtedly been a challenging period and thank Mike Dodds and Michael Proctor for overseeing our first-team programme in the interim. Now, our immediate priority is to support Alex and the team to ensure we deliver promotion this season and reward the faith continuously placed in us by our supporters.”