AS part of Northern Echo Sport's Saturday Spotlight this week, Paul Fraser caught up with former Tottenham and Real Zaragoza midfielder Nayim.

The Dubai-based former Tottenham man was Poyet’s team-mate when Zaragoza beat Arsenal to win the 1995 Cup Winners’ Cup final in Paris.

That was the night Nayim famously lobbed David Seaman from the half way line and he has been a friend of Poyet's since those glorious days.

And Nayim thinks Sunderland, who are set to have Poyet in charge for the first time against Swansea City today, have made the perfect appointment. This is what he said:

"I SPOKE to Gus earlier this week. I have stayed in touch with him and I can honestly say he is the best man to get Sunderland out of the position they are in.

"He is very excited about the challenge he has taken on and is exactly the sort of motivator Sunderland need right now at the bottom of the Premier League.

“When he was a player he was perfect for the dressing room. He just never stopped talking and was a fantastic character to have around. I used to play on the left of midfield and he would often be on the right, you could hear him all game talking away. He was very demanding.

“That is exactly what he will be like as a manager for Sunderland. He is a great character, he will not be afraid to come down hard on players when they make mistakes but he will do it in the right way. He has the ideal character to be a successful manager.

“The most important thing for Sunderland is that they have the right man after what happened (the way Paolo Di Canio was sacked after falling out with the players). Gus has that. He will be able to get the players to perform.

“At the end of the day he needs to do what is right for the club. It’s not about him and he will know that. He knows he has to get the results to lift Sunderland out of trouble and he has the right character to do that.

“When we played together he would not stop talking. All through the games he would just talk and talk and that’s what Sunderland’s players will need from their manager now, a manager who gives them support and the motivation to get results. Gus can do that.

“If there are shy players in the dressing room, the team, like we had at Zaragoza, Gus will be able to talk to them and get them focused on playing to their best. He was a vital player in Victor Fernandez’s Zaragoza team that won the Cup Winners’ Cup by beating Arsenal.

“He was unbelievable to have around lifted everyone when they were down. It was always obvious that he was going to go in to management. He talked tactics and football all day long. Even when we were players, we always thought Gus could go in to management and he is already a very good manager.”