Sunderland Exclusive: Jens Keller emerges as favourite for vacant managerial position - 7M sport

Sunderland Exclusive: Jens Keller emerges as favourite for vacant managerial position

BERLIN coach Jens Keller is in pole position to become cash-strapped Sunderland’s new manager if a German consortium completes its £85million takeover bid this week.


Posted Sunday, June 25, 2017 by Express.co.uk

Sunderland Exclusive: Jens Keller emerges as favourite for vacant managerial position
Berlin coach Jens Keller is the front-runner to become Sunderland's new manager

The Germans see him as the man to emulate David Wagner’s success at Huddersfield if the Black Cats’ US owner Ellis Short finally rubber stamps the deal.

The final price will rise to £100m if Sunderland are steered back to the Premier League at the first attempt.

Keller, 46, a former Stuttgart and Schalke player, guided Union Berlin to fourth position in Bundesliga 2 last season.

The potential new owners believe he will find that division a happy hunting ground for reinforcements, just like Wagner did.

Simon Grayson and Nigel Pearson remain leading candidates to succeed David Moyes with the bookies in Britain.

But Grayson this week dismissed any talk of him leaving Preston to take up the position at Sunderland.

"As far as I'm concerned there's a lot of speculation about a lot of different jobs, but I'm fully committed to working out what we're doing for the season at Preston," he told talkSPORT.

"I don't consider it [the speculation] whatsoever until someone says something different, whether it's Sunderland or any other job. We've had a good couple of years in the Championship [at Preston] and we want to keep improving.

"We were on the periphery of the play-offs last season and just ran out of steam in the back end of the season.

"I've been there just over four years now and really enjoyed my time. You just get on and do what you do and I'm focused on trying to get things right at Preston.

"I'm fully committed to Preston and, if anything changes along the way, that's just football."



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