Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/178572
23 Sport maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 25 SEPTEMBER 2013 OPINION And in a flash, he was gone players after bad performances and no one, from the club captain to the youths bursting through the ranks, could escape his wrath. He protected nobody and it seemed his passion often came through as negative. In this way he lost the dressing room and it leaves a bad taste on his reign. This summer Di Canio somehow managed to sign 14 players and Sunderland have a brand new squad. Naturally, decent players had to be sold to make way for the newbees with Martin O'Neill's squad completely dismantled by the volatile manager. Of the 14 new summer signings, Sunderland received criticism as only one of these was English. His choice of words after press conferences and the way he reacted during the 90 minutes of play shocked many and this new style of management takes time to get used to. In my piece last year I argued that he was hired to do one thing: wake the Black Cats up and push them out of the relegation places. He did just that, with his side even hitting three past rivals Newcastle on his best day out. His management style is better suited for a relegation scrap or perhaps a good cup run, maybe even a summer international tournament, but truth be told though many people think six months is not long enough, I am surprised he even lasted that long. Sunderland have proved that their vision and business model is a joke. It is hard to say whether or not Martin Mark Strijbosch IT was exactly six months ago when I typed my prediction that Paulo Di Canio would help keep the Black Cats up, but be sacked shortly after. Following a terrible start to the season, Sunderland have finally done away with the controversial Di Canio, despite his last ditch attempts to boost morale last Saturday. Sunderland whimpered to a 3-0 away defeat to Wes Brom which saw him march towards his disgruntled fans after the final whistle, urging them to keep their heads up. It was his final march as Sunderland boss, as he was sacked the following day. Sunderland surprised everyone last season when they replaced Martin O'Neill with the little experienced, but passionate, Di Canio, and truth be told their lack of vision has made them pay. They have been sacking managers left right and centre and the club simply cannot find solid ground. Di Canio only lasted 13 games and the reasons for this were clear. Primarily, he only managed three wins, but during just six months at the club he just about upset everyone. Famed for his passionate and explosive approach to the beautiful game, Di Canio often blasted Paulo Di Canio O'Neill would have guaranteed survival, but he was a good long term plan, and many backed him to keep them up. If they so desperately wanted rid of him, they should have signed Di Canio on a short term deal till the end of the season as an interim, similar what Chelsea famously did with Rafa Benitez. He is the ideal man for that type of job and it would have been job done, giving them the whole of summer to look for a suitable replacement. His last game will certainly not be remembered for any good. With 20 minutes to go his team trailed 1-0 and he decided to make all three substitu- tions. Off forward Fletcher goes injured, and its curtains on Sunderland with 10 men on the pitch and no subs left. It is that type of foresight which Di Canio and his club lack, and they must use it when appointing their next manager, their eleventh in ten years. That stat is the worry of modern football and chairmen and boards alike must strive to adopt better business models to ensure the same is not repeated. Despite the reputation of this one, more Italians are being linked to the job, but luckily for Sunderland fans these ones are is a little calmer. Gianfranco Zola is itching to get back into management, and he joins Roberto Mancini and Roberto di Matteo as the tricolori linked to the job. Another laughable link is Steve Mclaren, who they should steer away from if they want to impress their fans. Sensibly, Gus Poyet is also being linked, though no one yet knows what he did wrong to be publicly sacked at Brighton. In the meantime it is up to the caretaker Kevin Ball to steer the ship, with his side facing Peterborough in the League Cup, and Liverpool this weekend. The learning curve is a steep one, however most often thats the best way to bounce back from any setback. Pursuits Across 1. Lazy (13) 8. Division of a book (7) 10. Living room (7) 12. Subsided (6) 13. Frozen dessert (3,5) 15. Numerical fact (9) 18. Medium of exchange (5) 21. Leash (5) 22. Exciting experience (9) 27. Set free (8) 29. One or the other of two (6) 30. Blunder (7) 31. Garden vegetable (7) 33. State in SE Australia (3,5,5) Sudoku Sudoku rules are extremely easy: Fill all empty squares so that the numbers 1 to 9 appear once in each row, column and 9x9 box. Answers to the MaltaToday crossword will be published next Wednesday Last week's solution Chess Today's Weather 8 8 WEATHER: Partly cloudy becoming partly to rather cloudy VISIBILITY: Good WIND: 7 Northwest force 4 to 5 locally force 5 to 6, becoming locally force 6 for some time during the day. SEA: Moderate to rough becoming rough SWELL: Low Northwest locally negligible at first 6 7 5 6 4 3 5 2 1 4 A 3 2 1 A B C D E F G H White to play and mate in four moves B Nd6 Rh8 Rxe8+ Rc8# C D Ka8 Kb8 Kc7 E F G H CLOUDY 28ºC / 22ºC UV INDEX: 8 SEA TEMP: 26 °C Down 2. State of USA (7) 3. Equipment (3) 4. Person who skates (6) 5. Got up (5) 6. Vast seas (6) 7. Grouchy (6) 9. First-born (6) 11. High fidelity (2-2) 14. Perch (5) 16. Small child (3) 17. Commerce (5) 19. Organ of hearing (3) 20. Swiss city (6) 21. Join together (6) 23. Low in pitch (4) 24. Lift up (7) 25. Weirder (6) 26. Makeshift (4,2) 28. Courageous (5) 32. Bleat of a sheep (3)