Following Dick Advocaat's departure last weekend, Sam Allardyce has been appointed as the new Sunderland manager. Big Sam, as he is popularly called, has a wealth of Premier League experience under his belt with Bolton, Newcastle, Blackburn and West Ham - but is he the right man to turn Sunderland's fortunes around?
Allardyce hit a knack for bringing the best out of aging stars such as Jay-Jay Okocha, Yuori Djokaeff and Ivan Campo and developed a direct, physical style of football which made Bolton Wanderers a nightmare to play against (they were Arsenal's bogey team). Allardyce's side finished in the top eight for four consecutive seasons between 2003 and his departure in 2007, reaching a League Cup final and the knock-out stages of the UEFA Cup in the process. His achievements saw him touted as a candidate for the England job in 2006.
An eight month spell in Newcastle which ended ignominiously was followed by stints at Blackburn and West Ham United. It was at West Ham he almost repeated his successful years at Bolton, leading them back to the premiership and finishing in the top half of the table in the first year back in the top flight. Despite stabilizing the club, Big sam came under heavy criticism from fans and pundits for his tactical approach and direct style of play and Allardyce left the club at the close of the 2014/15 season following a 12th place finish.
So how does Allardyce's record compare to his Sunderland predecessors? Big Sam has overseen 437 Premier League games in total, winning 148, drawing 120 and losing 169 and giving him an overall win percentage of 33.9 per cent. By contrast, Gus Poyet only had a 23.3 win percentage in his 60 Premier League games at the helm, while Dick Advocaat was down on 17.7 per cent for his 17 games in charge.
So, can Sam Allardyce keep Sunderland up?
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