Sunderland’s potential next manager made a very interesting admission about Eddie Howe earlier this year

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When Newcastle United take on Sunderland in the FA Cup in January, the Black Cats will have a new manager calling the shots.

While it will be Eddie Howe who leads the Magpies into battle in the derby, it is unclear who the Sunderland manager is going to be.

That is because they decided to sack Tony Mowbray on Monday night, as they continue their tradition of changing manager before a Tyne-Wear derby.

There is a huge amount of excitement and trepidation surrounding the game at the Stadium Of Light, as Newcastle prepare to play against Sunderland for the first time since 2016. It will be Eddie Howe’s first derby as Toon boss, while the club will look for their first victory over the Mackems since 2011.

The Magpies will be the favourites no matter what, but it remains unclear what type of Sunderland team we will face as they continue to search for a new manager.

Funnily enough, one of the current names being linked with the post is a man who admits to being inspired by our current leader Eddie Howe.

Who Sunderland want as their new manager

According to the Guardian, Reims manager Will Still is on Sunderland’s managerial shortlist to replace Tony Mowbray at the Stadium Of Light.

The report states that the 31-year-old manager has impressed Sunderland’s owner with his efforts in France with Ligue 1 club Reims, which is why he is being considered for the job on Wearside.

Like many other managers, Still would immediately be able to get the fans onside at Sunderland if he could get a win in the Tyne-Wear derby, where he would be taking on a manager who he has paid close attention to during his young career.

Will Still inspired by Newcastle boss Eddie Howe

During an interview with French YouTube channel Free earlier this year, Still was asked to name some of the managers that have inspired him – and one of his answers is now very interesting in light of recent events.

“Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola, Vincent Kompany who does an extraordinary job at Burnley, Eddie Howe at Newcastle,” he said.

“But I could never compare myself to all these guys, because they are in another universe than me.”

Still does not think he is in the same universe as Howe, and that theory could be put to the test as early as January, if the youngster is appointed as Sunderland manager.

He would certainly be an interesting appointment by the Black Cats, while his previous praise of the Newcastle United manager might not go down too well on Wearside.