Deal completed: 37-year-old joins Sunderland after quitting Champions League team, however.

37-year-old lands Sunderland role after leaving Charlton Athletic in 2023

Sunderland have brought in former Charlton Athletic coach Anthony Hayes as their new first-team coach, it has been confirmed.

Sunderland decided to part ways with Michael Beale earlier this week and rather than naming a new permanent manager, Mike Dodds has stepped into the head coach role on an interim basis. He will hold this position until the end of the season.

Graeme Murty, Michael Proctor and Alessandro Barcherini are part of Dodds’ backroom team, and a new figure has been added.

As announced on the club’s official website, Anthony Hayes has arrived at the Stadium of Light as the new Sunderland first-team coach. He’s a figure known to Dodds and will come in to help with coaching as the Black Cats look to break back into the Championship play-off fight.

Hayes, 37, saw a lengthy stay at Charlton Athletic end back in September 2023. He had worked as academy manager before stepping into an assistant manager role where he worked alongside Dean Holden, Ben Garner and briefly Michael Appleton.

A new figure for Dodds

Dodds might only be in charge in the interim at Sunderland, but he’s being backed. The addition of Hayes shows the club are willing to back his methods, and that only makes sense given that they’ve handed him the reins for the rest of the season.

Bringing in someone of his own choice should only help him further spread the message he’s trying to send during his time at the helm. It should only help instil his beliefs and tactics into the playing squad too.

A finish in the top six seems unlikely but it’s not out of reach by any means. Sunderland sit 10th in the Championship table as things stand, 10 points away from the play-offs with 13 games to save their season.