English manager Will Still leaves top-flight side as Sunderland & West Ham links intensify

The 31-year-old has been heavily linked with the Sunderland post in recent months
Will Still has left Reims.Will Still has left Reims.
Will Still has left Reims.

Will Still has dropped a bombshell announcement that he will be leaving French side Stade de Reims with immediate effect as links to a number of English clubs continue to intensify. 

The 31-year-old, whose love for the sport reportedly stemmed from him playing Football Manager as a kid, has enjoyed a successful two-year spell at Reims which has seen him steer the club away from the drop zone and into a comfortable mid table position.

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He notably inherited a Reims team that were in the relegation zone and led them to an incredible 19-game unbeaten streak, which at the time was the best in all of the top five European leagues.

Mail Sport understands that Still met with Reims president Jean-Pierre Caillot and general manager Matheui Lacour on Thursday, where it was agreed that he would move on to pastures new at the end of the season. He leaves Reims with his brother Nicolas, who has acted as assistant manager, by mutual consent.

In a statement Still said: “I thank Stade de Reims, prescient Calliot and Matheui Lacour for giving me this unique opportunity and for supporting me throughout my journey here.”

“I will be eternally grateful for Stade de Reims as well as everyone involved directly or indirectly with the club.

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“I would like to thank in particular all the players with whom I was able to work with, all the technical,performance, analytical, medical staff as well as the stewards, but also and above all the supporters of this wonderful club.”

Still, who is one of the youngest managers in European football, has been heavily linked with the Sunderland job in recent months.

He was on the shortlist to replace Tony Mowbray at the Stadium of Light in December prior to the appointment of Michael Beale who lasted just 12 games.

Mike Dodds has been in interim charge ever since but now reports from TalkSport claim that the Black Cats could make a fresh move for Still now that he is a free agent.

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Similarly, Still has previously told Jake Humphrey on the High Performance Podcast that he is a supporter of West Ham. They too could be looking for a new manager in the summer as David Moyes future remains uncertain in the capital.

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