Blackpool have announced that David Dunn will take over as the club's interim manager, following the sacking of Simon Grayson on Wednesday.

Grayson was sacked by the club in the wake of the Seasiders' last-minute 3-2 defeat at home to Gillingham on Tuesday night, a result that means they have won just one of their last 12 games in all competitions.

With Blackpool now searching for a permanent replacement for Grayson, former Blackburn and Birmingham midfielder Dunn is set to take temporary charge of the Bloomfield Road club.

Dunn only joined Blackpool as a member of the coaching staff at the start of 2020, and his only previous spell in charge of a senior side was between September 2015 and January 2016, when he won three and lost eight of his 20 games in charge of then-League One side Oldham Athletic.

Speaking to the club's official website about the decision to sack Grayson, and place Dunn in temporary charge, Blackpool owner Simon Sadler said: “Given his past success here, Simon Grayson will always be a part of the Club’s history and I would like to wish both him and Ian Miller well for the future.

“While the process of appointing a new manager gets underway, I would like to thank David Dunn for agreeing to take charge in the interim.”

It has also been confirmed that assistant manager Ian Miller has now left Bloomfield Road.

Dunn first game in charge of Blackpool is set to come on Saturday afternoon, when they make the trip to the Memorial Stadium to take on Bristol Rovers.

Blackpool go into that game 15th in the League One table, 13 points adrift of the play-off places, and 14 clear of the relegation zone.

The Verdict

The appointment of Dunn may be a risky one for Blackpool to take.

The one-time England international's brief previous record in management isn't exactly inspiring, so you have to wonder if he is capable of getting results at this level - albeit, it could be argued he now has a stronger set of players at his disposal than he did at Oldham, as well as more coaching experience of his own.

Even so, the fact that Dunn has only arrived at the club a matter of weeks may also be a concern, since you have to wonder whether or not he knows the squad and the club well enough to get the best out of it at this moment in time.

With that in mind, you imagine Blackpool will want to move quickly in order to secure a permanent replacement for Grayson, and put their focus solely back on on the pitch matters.