Lee Cattermole has offered a thorough assessment on Sunderland head coach Michael Beale.
Former Sunderland favourite Lee Cattermole has given his opinion on Michael Beale’s stint thus far and Sunderland’s decision to hire him as head coach.
The former Rangers and QPR manager took over at the Academy of Light from the popular Tony Mowbray and had a difficult start to life on Wearside following numerous poor results and an outburst at fans in the media.
Despite some uneven play, Sunderland has taken four points from their past two Championship games against Stoke City at the Stadium of Light and Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium.
“I think the appointment, being up there and connected to the club,” Cattermole told Sky Sports before the Middlesbrough match last Sunday. “I suppose everyone expected Mowbray to move somewhere foreign. I know Will Still was referenced a few times, which got the supporters quite thrilled.
“The appointment of Beale, I don’t believe the form has changed significantly. I believe the style of play has altered slightly. I attended to the Hull game at home, and Sunderland could have easily won that night, but the manner of play was quite robotic. They played a lot in front and didn’t go behind. Tony did, however, improve the team’s offensive performance.
“I believe Beale would have looked into that. I didn’t watch the Stoke City game, but by all reports, they were much more dangerous going forward. I believe that, like any other job, whether you are a player or a manager, you must always demonstrate your abilities. Beale will be up for it. He has been with the Rangers. He has been at QPR and has worked extensively with Steven Gerrard.
Cattermole broke into Boro’s first team at the age of 17 against local rivals Newcastle United, then joined the Latics before going to Sunderland in 2009 for about £6 million under previous boss Steve Bruce.
The combative midfielder lasted ten seasons on Wearside, eight of them in the Premier League, before the Black Cats were relegated in consecutive seasons, leaving the club stranded in League One until now.
“He leads the club. It is a large club. 40-odd thousand people every week, and there is a demand on them, but for me, they must be fighting to get back into the league, and that must be the challenge,” Cattermole said. “We hear a lot about the model and other such topics. I’ve seen the club inside a little bit already, and all the fans see is what happens on a Saturday at 3 p.m. or Sunday at 12 p.m. That’s the part you have to get correctly. Listen, that’s a big responsibility for him, and I’m confident he’s up for it.
Cattermole, 35, has been working on his qualifications for some time and has worked with his hometown club Middlesbrough’s youth teams and first team after making 395 senior appearances in all competitions over 15 seasons as a professional footballer before retiring in 2020.
