VAR controversy during Sunderland 1-1 Everton as Louis-Dreyfus delivers interview
Sunderland drew 1-1 with Everton on Monday evening
TalkSPORT pundit Simon Jordan has reacted to Sunderland owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus’ claims that he would like to see the Black Cats finish in the top half of the Premier League this season, suggesting that it is an achievable goal.
Regis Le Bris’ men played out a 1-1 draw with Everton on Monday evening, and speaking to Sky Sports before that contest, Louis-Dreyfus was quizzed about his plans for the January transfer window, to which he responded: “We're currently preparing for all scenarios but we've been doing that since the summer, so hopefully we'll be going into the January window with a top ten finish in mind and we will prepare and execute the transfer window to give us the best chance.”
And in an appearance on talkSPORT, Jordan has backed Sunderland to follow through on the owner’s eye-catching aspirations over the coming months.
What has Simon Jordan said about Sunderland’s top half hopes?
When asked about Louis-Dreyfus’ comments, Jordan said: “I feel that if an owner spends 187 million euros, which is what this fella spent - okay, there's been some netting off because Jobe Bellingham went to Borussia Dortmund - but notwithstanding, he's still had a proper go. So there's no reason why he shouldn't have lofty ambitions. There's no reason why any football club coming into the Premier League shouldn't attack it with vigour. They know what the consequences of it are. They know how to play football in the division and not get punished - most of them do, if they're sensible.
“So it depends whether you feel there's a necessity to communicate in the public domain what your ambitions are, rather than privately, because the manager should be under no illusions. That's fine. The manager should be put in his place, told what your expectations are, given the tools to go and achieve with it, and then monitored by that perspective. When you announce it in the public domain, I don't know what you achieve...
“There's a balance between putting yourself in a situation where you're going to be judged by it - you're always going to be judged by it. It doesn't matter. So what is the purpose? Are you galvanising your fan base? Are you sending a signal to your manager and the players? If you are, do it privately. Or if you're in the business now where entertainment is all about ambition and aspiration, then why shouldn't an owner have the right to say things? It doesn't put pressure on managers. It creates a culture inside a football club. And if you back it up, which this fellow has done, this young man who's done very, very well - because the decisions that he's made and the appointments that he's made have been on him...
“The fact of the matter is that the owner wants the manager to understand the opportunity and the ambition he wants to pursue it. If the owner is saying to the manager, ‘If you do not get a top 10 finish, we've got a problem’, well, maybe that's a bit harsh... That's different.”
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Jordan was then asked if where Sunderland could finish this season, adding: “Top 10? Why not? You've seen it done before. Well, listen, we've seen it done before. This is not a new thing. We saw Swansea come into the division. Everybody said they can't play the type of football they've played in the Championship. They proceeded to do it for a number of seasons, which culminated in winning the League Cup - eventually dropped out of the Premier League. We've seen Sheffield United come up and surprise the league and get themselves into a position of significance. So there's no reason why Sunderland can't do that. But it's all about then what happens after that, because the second season syndrome tends to be that other teams have worked you out, there's no surprise package with you anymore. And all of a sudden, you've got to be able to have more than one trick or be very good at the trick that you've got.
“They're a big football club. They've been out of the Premier League for, what, seven, eight years. They've gotten back. They've gone through their hardships. They've gone through their ownership models that haven't worked out, and all these different parts of the journey have brought them to where they are now. I'm pleased for them. I'm pleased for the owner, because I was a little bit snooty about this young man coming in with his dad's money, and with respect to him, he has been his own man. He's very lucky in life that he's got a wonderful head start, but he's still got to do something with it. He's still got to have substance behind what he does.”
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