Kieran Maguire fires ‘toxic’ warning to Sunderland after ‘shocking’ development
Sunderland will have reduced parachute payments and huge overheads next season – it could be a long way back to the big-time for the Black Cats.
That is according to finance guru and Football Insider columnist Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively as the dust settles on Sunderland’s League One play-off heartache.
The Black Cats lost 3-2 over two legs to Lincoln City in the semi-finals, the second time in three seasons they have fallen at this hurdle.
The defeat means Sunderland will play for a fourth successive season in League One after spending just one campaign in the third-tier over the previous 136 years.
And Maguire claims that it could be a long way back for the club as the lack of parachute payments and other financial realities kick in.
“It’s shocking,” he told Football Insider correspondent Adam Williams.
“They have had two seasons in League One with parachute payments. So they have had the funds to build a squad which is significantly advantageous compared to the peer group.
“There are plenty of overheads at Sunderland. It is a big stadium and it does have very good training facilities compared to many of the clubs in League One.
“So I think they will have to play catch-up when they do return to the Championship.
“It is already a competitive league and they have lost practically all of their players with higher division experience.
“You can come up with a really tight dressing room. But when you’ve got some of the toxic issues that have arisen, unless they are addressed by the owners then it could be a challenge.
“The one thing that they’ve got in their favour is an owner with a huge amount of wealth. So pressing the ‘go’ button should not be too big a challenge.”
In other news, major update on star striker Wyke quitting Sunderland.