Dwight Yorke has revealed that he applied to become the manager of Sunderland last year but didn’t receive a response from the club and is less than hopeful of being in the running this time round, as reported by The Express, via comments made to Alt Index.
The former Trinidad and Tobago international ended his playing days with the Black Cats in 2009 after an illustrious career that saw him score over 100 Premier League goals, win the Treble and represent his country at their first and only World Cup appearance in 2006.
Since then, Yorke claims to have been interviewed for the top jobs at Sutton United and Perth Glory whilst also applying for the role at another of his former clubs, Aston Villa. The former Sydney FC striker did get a shot at management with Australian outfit Macarthur FC in 2020. Yorke led the recently formed club to their first piece of silverware in the form of the Australian Cup and had a win percentage of over 50%.
The 66-cap international would last a little over six months before leaving the Sydney-based side after making disparaging remarks about the team and Australian football as a whole and Yorke was expected to join A-League giants Sydney FC but a move never materialised. He has since spoken of the troubles he faces in his quest to find further positions in management.
Since Tony Mowbray left the Stadium of Light just over a week ago, Yorke’s former club are still in search of his replacement and the three-time Premier League winner has spoken about applying for the role before Mowbray’s appointment. He said, “I have tried applying for the Sunderland job before and I’d love to have that opportunity, but I’m not sure if they’d give me a chance. I applied before Tony Mowbray joined, but I didn’t get an answer or acknowledgement.”
Yorke continued, “It’s a bit of a slap in the face to not even hear back. It seems the same faces are linked with the job. It can make you a bit despondent, but if they were to ask me to put a CV in, it could be worth a chance. Learning on the job doesn’t seem to exist anymore, though, and it seems as if you have to have an abundance of experience to be considered for the job and defy the odds.”
The Express report claims that Dwight Yorke is unlikely to be under consideration for the Sunderland job as the club appears to have identified Will Still, Kim Hellberg and Paul Heckingbottom as their shortlisted candidates.
Writer’s View
Dwight Yorke had a stellar playing career but his lack of managerial experience does not lend itself to a job with a side chasing the Championship playoffs. His only previous management experience brought silverware and a good win percentage but it is unlikely teams like Sunderland are looking at a manager with six months experience in the A-League.
Yorke will rightly argue that the likes of Wayne Rooney and Frank Lampard continue to pick up or be linked with jobs despite a lack of success so he should be given a chance. It is highly unlikely that chance will come at Sunderland and it is hard to see where the striker will get his big break in English football. Having been interviewed for the Sutton United job, the Manchester United legend seems happy to work at different levels of the pyramid and the lower reaches of the Football League are perhaps his best opportunity for a chance at a top job.
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