Former Sunderland manager Gus Poyet has claimed that Sam Allardyce is the ideal candidate to replace Dick Advocaat at the Stadium of Light.
The Black Cats parted company with Advocaat on Sunday after the Dutchman had failed to secure a Premier League victory in any of their eight games this season.
Allardyce is the favourite to succeed the Dutchman, and Poyet, who was sacked by Sunderland in March, feels that the 60-year-old is the best man for the job - despite his previous spell in charge of their North-East rivals Newcastle United.
"Sam Allardyce [should be Sunderland's next appointment]," the Uruguayan is quoted as saying by talkSPORT.
"[But] first of all I don't know if Sam would like to go and maybe I'm putting it a little on Sam and he is going to kill me next time I see him. He had an experience before in the North-East. He knows the Premier League inside out and he knows exactly what a team needs to do to stay in the Premier League.
"He has done it everywhere he has been so it's not something new. That experience of being there for so long will definitely help."
Sunderland sit 19th in the standings, level with bottom-of-the-table Newcastle after winning three points from a possible 24.