SIMON TO CLEAN UP CATS MESS

Grayson taking over as club sale shelved

SIMON GRAYSON last night walked into a club in turmoil when he took over at Sunderland.

Grayson quit Preston and has been installed as Black Cats boss on a three-year deal after the collapse of takeover talks with a German consortium.

Owner Ellis Short pulled the plug on the day a depleted squad reported back for pre-season training, with coach Robbie Stockdale put in charge.

Sunderland have been in limbo since David Moyes left in May, with Short desperate to sell and the managerial search put on hold as he looked for potential buyers.

Now the £90m buyout is on the backburner with Short staying at least until the end of the season.

Grayson, who will have a £20m budget, has received assurances from chief executive Martin Bain that No.1 target Derek McInnes, the Aberdeen boss, didn’t get.

The new manager said: “I am delighted to come to Sunderland, a club with such wonderful history and tradition. I’m excited by the opportunity to manage this club and I want to bring the good times back.

“They have such tremendous support and I want to give these fans a team they can be proud of. I want a group of players full of ® desire, team spirit and a never-say-die attitude – that’s the very least that we should expect from a Sunderland player.

“The Championship is a demanding league, but our aim has to be to get the club back to where it belongs as quickly as possible and I can’t wait to get started.”

Crippled

Grayson will be joined by assistant manager Glynn Snodin, while Stockdale remains as first-team coach and Adrian Tucker as goalkeeping coach.

But with Jermain Defoe joining Bournemouth and Fabio Borini sealing his shock £5m move to AC Milan, Sunderland’s new boss will fly out to a training camp in Austria on Monday with no recognised strikers. The Black Cats also have a host of players out of contract as they head towards their Championship campaign.

Everton winger Aiden McGeady – who was on loan at Deepdale last season – will be on Grayson’s radar.

The Wearsiders have gone through six managers since Grayson joined Preston in 2013. He knows he is joining a club crippled by debt and with an owner whose long-term future remains uncertain.

Sunderland released a statement last night about the takeover collapse.

It said: “A defined timeframe was placed on discussions to ensure that the club could move forward quickly and decisively with its plans for the new season should they not come to fruition.

“We have concluded these talks and have determined that this... sale would not be in the best interests of Sunderland AFC.”