Alex Neil has now explained the ‘key component’ that urged him to leave Sunderland in 2022.
In February 2022, Alex Neil made his Sunderland debut, nearly a year after leaving Preston North End for another position.
His appointment disappointed the Black Cats because it was thought to be a return for Roy Keane. Neil’s presence, though, turned out to be a big success.
In his 15 games in command of Sunderland, the 42-year-old lost just one. Sunderland went on to win the play-offs and secure a spot in the Championship for the 2022–2023 campaign.
With several promising players on the roster, Wearside was well-positioned for a thrilling debut season back in the second division.
The team started the new season with eight points out of a possible fifteen, but Neil’s first game in charge was a close victory over Stoke City. Neil was later named the Potters’ permanent manager after being noticed at their subsequent game.
Frustrated Sunderland supporters heckled Neil mercilessly, but he didn’t elaborate much on his choice to depart from the Stadium of Light.
However, his sacking by Stoke and Sunderland’s search for a new manager has led to the Scot’s explanation as to why he chose to move to the Midlands.
Neil stated, “‘The last thing I ever wanted to do was throw fuel on the fire,'” on the #EFLDebate YouTube channel. Many people made absolutely false statements about me.
We had recently received promotions at that point. The best illustration I can give you is this: once you recruit a striker, if he goes on to score twenty goals and indicates he wants a new contract, you will do all in your power to meet his demands. After five or six years of trying, we had just been promoted, and at that moment, anyone doubting my commitment to Sunderland was ridiculous because I wanted to be at Sunderland.
“As soon as we got promoted, I wanted discussions to extend my stay and take out a better deal and be part of the club moving forward, because that’s where I saw my future. But the fact was, as far as they were concerned, I had signed my deal and that was the deal that I was on. To me at that point, it didn’t show any faith in me or security. That was really the key component that drove everything after that.”
Was Alex Neil offered a new contract at Sunderland?
Although it’s possible that Alex Neil didn’t like that his contract was flexible, Kristjaan Speakman has already refuted any claims that he wasn’t given improved terms following his promotion.
“We had a really well structured contract for when he moved into the Championship and had the appropriate uplifts,” Speakman remarked in August 2022, following Neil’s connection to Stoke.
“We wanted to give him a prize and practically give him a well-done, so we had a conversation in the summer. Only four weeks ago was the contract signed after it was revised and debated.
“Obviously on yesterday’s news naturally for us wanting to retain that coach and retain that person within our football club, we made a further move to offer another set of terms and just unfortunately, that doesn’t appear enough for him to stay.”
Neil can blame the club for his departure, but if Speakman is telling the truth, the club had previously made him an offer of more money just a month later. He then went behind our backs to see the Potters and attend a match just before we played our own.
He can’t be trusted or forgiven, no matter what he did for Sunderland. Perhaps if he had handled the issue better, more of us might have been willing to welcome him back.
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