Sunderland have begun to make a “raft of redundancies” of staff at the Stadium of Light, following on from the departure of CEO Martin Bain.

According to Keith Downie, North-East England reporter for Sky Sports News, a number of non-playing staff have begun to lose their jobs at the club following Stewart Donald’s takeover of the side.

Downie tweeted: “Understand Donald has begun making a raft of redundancies on the non-playing staff this morning. Yesterday CEO Martin Bain was the first to lose his job.”

The former Eastleigh owner completed the takeover from Ellis Short.

Sunderland will play in League One next season, following their second relegation in as many years, after finishing bottom of the Championship this season.

Martin Bain, who took over as CEO of the Black Cats in 2016, joined Chris Coleman and Kit Symons in departing their roles at the Stadium of Light in recent weeks.

The Verdict

Sunderland have been in need of a severe overhaul for many years, but we assumed it would come on the pitch, rather than off it.

The uncertainty surrounding the club doesn’t bode well as they go into the summer transfer market, and in to their League One campaign next season.

Anything other than promotion next season for the Black Cats would likely be considered a failure, due to the size of the club, compared to those teams that they will be facing.