MARTIN O’Neill made his first public appearance as Sunderland manager yesterday, and immediately admitted he thought his chance of managing the club he idolised as a boy had gone.
Having taken charge of his first training session at the Academy of Light yesterday morning, O’Neill was formally confirmed as Steve Bruce’s successor at a press conference at the Stadium of Light in the afternoon.
The 59-year-old, who grew up in his native Northern Ireland as a Sunderland supporter, first met Niall Quinn to discuss a position on Wearside back in 2006, in the weeks before Roy Keane was appointed, but his wife Geraldine’s ongoing battle against cancer meant he felt unable to uproot to the North- East.
He subsequently joined Aston Villa, leading the West Midlands club to three successive top-six finishes, and while he has been linked with a number of different roles since leaving Villa Park 16 months ago, he did not envisage being given another opportunity to become Black Cats boss.
“Generally, I think those opportunities never occur again,” said O’Neill, who will take charge of his first game on Sunday when struggling Blackburn visit the Stadium of Light. “You never know whether Niall might have taken it rather personally at the time.
“They were different circumstances five years ago, it was more to do with personal reasons, but maybe he wouldn’t want to call you again?
“It is a genuine privilege to be here. It really is a fantastic club and it is an honour. I am hoping that on the day I leave, it will have been really worthwhile to have been here.
“That is want I want to achieve. If we could get results through sheer enthusiasm and determination, I am sure we would be halfway there. I am so energised about it that it is hard to describe.”
O’Neill cut his managerial teeth at Wycombe Wanderers, who he guided into the Football League for the first time in their history, and went on to win major honours at both Leicester City and Celtic before moving to Villa.
He becomes the latest in a long line of managers to have been charged with the task of bringing success to Sunderland, and while the club has won just one piece of silverware in the last 74 years, he views his new employers as one of the giants of the English game.
“There’s incredible passion around the place,” he said.
“They turn up in great numbers and I just want to be part of it. It feels very much like when I went to Celtic. You feel it. You know there’s a community and that you’re in it.
“I always felt like that at Celtic and I get that feeling here. Time will tell. I’m sure it’s there in abundance, but I want to feel it.
“I know that support in itself doesn’t guarantee anything.
“Chelsea get 40,000, but the reason they’ve won trophies is because they have the wherewithal financially to compete with Manchester United, who get 75,000.
“But from a potential point of view, this club is fantastic.
Maybe Sunderland haven’t quite realised that potential.
It’s hard to say, but I couldn’t be more excited about it.”
Potential is one thing though, reality is quite another, and the reality of the situation O’Neill has inherited is that Sunderland are just one point above the relegation zone after the opening 14 games of the season.
An instant improvement is required, but while Steven Fletcher’s late double might have condemned the Black Cats to their third defeat in four matches at the weekend, O’Neill saw enough to convince him there is sufficient quality in the squad to engineer a turnaround, provided some confidence can be restored.
“I think there’s enough talent at this club to get out of this position,” he said.
“I think we have a number of decent players, but very naturally when you lose a few games, confidence is not at its highest.
“It’s so important. When good players lose confidence, you’ll not see them play at anything like their ability.
That needs to be restored, and it needs to be restored pretty quickly.”
If O’Neill cannot generate an instant improvement from the players at his disposal, he will no doubt be keen to use the impending January transfer window to remould his squad.
He insists he is yet to discuss a transfer budget with owner Ellis Short, and will give every member of the current first-team squad an opportunity to stake a claim for a place.
“We have a number of games over the Christmas period and I would imagine we will have to use a number of players over that time,” he said.
“I assume I will be using most of my senior players and they will have some sort of chance.
“We will see what develops, but it is going to take me a few weeks before I realise the abilities of the team and individuals within it, and perhaps the potential of one or two.
“That is what I will be doing, but more importantly, we need to win some games.”
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