IT'S more than three months since Michael Beale's disastrous short-term Sunderland tenure came to an end but it's still not known who'll replace him in the Stadium of Light dugout.

The Black Cats are understood to still be going through the process of speaking to and assessing candidates to become the club's next head coach.

At this stage it remains unclear when Sunderland hope to have a new head coach in place, with the squad set to return to the Academy of Light at the end of June.

One candidate could be ruled out by the end of the week, with Bo Svensson in talks with Bundesliga outfit Union Berlin. Paul Heckingbottom was this week linked with Plymouth, while Will Still has been linked with Norwich.

What does it all mean for the Black Cats? Here's the current state of play with the known candidates - and the prospect of new names emerging.

Will Still

Still was on Sunderland's radar back in December but at the time was still in charge of Stade de Reims so the interest didn't develop.

There was a twist earlier this month when the 31-year-old left the French top flight club, prompting inevitable Sunderland speculation.

Still has previously made it clear he'd be willing to take a job in the Championship, which is probably his best hope as things stand of achieving his dream of managing in England. A Premier League job feels unlikely.

Still has been linked with Norwich since David Wagner was sacked last week and remains a short price with the bookies to take charge at Carrow Road.

It comes as Reims president Jean-Pierre Caillot this week opened up on Still's exit.

He said: “Will Still, it’s a very beautiful story, a very beautiful meeting. He matched the profile we wanted. But then, it’s a bit of a risk when you take on young people.

“Here, at Stade de Reims, we give young people a chance at all levels, whether players or staff, and when we have young people, we have to accept at times that they make mistakes.

“I think that the ‘Will Still effect’ meant that there were a lot of communications from him, a lot of requests. A more experienced coach would have protected himself more, and he went from being a nice guy with a fresh air, to someone who was a little lost in his communication and this was felt in his management of the team.”

He added: “For six months, we could see that it was not the Will Still that we had chosen for over a year now, that things had changed. It was hard to imagine how the story could continue.

“I am not at the origin of his departure, I am rather at his conclusion. After the Clermont match (Still's final game in charge) he said to me: ‘I have no more words, I don't know how to do it anymore.’

“He asked me for an interview with his agent and his dad. Following this interview, which was carried out in complete serenity, we came to the conclusion that we had to know how to stop the story and everyone was very fair on their part.”

Danny Rohl

Sunderland aren't the only club monitoring Danny Rohl developments after the German's superb work in guiding Sheffield Wednesday to Championship safety.

But the Owls are confident clubs interested in their boss will be left disappointed, with talks between Rohl and Wednesday chairman Dejphon Chansiri said to be progressing well.

Talks took place after Wednesday secured safety with a final day victory at Sunderland and negotiations have continued after the 35-year-old boss returned from a holiday. Wednesday are said to be confident that Rohl will put pen to paper on a new extended deal at Hillsborough.

His current contract is understood to run until next year, but any clubs who take Rohl would reportedly have to pay £5m in compensation - and double that if he was joined by close-knit coaching team.

Bo Svensson

Bo Svensson emerged as a target for Sunderland earlier this month but the 44-year-old former Denmark international could soon be off the market.

According to reports in Germany on Wednesday, Svensson was set for talks to become the new boss of Union Berlin.

He's said to be the "dream" candidate of the club's new managing director Horst Heldt, who only officially took up his role this week. Sky Germany say "things could move very quickly" if yesterday's talks were positive.

Svensson started his coaching career in the Austrian second tier with FC Liefering, a feeder club for Red Bull Salzburg, He was then appointed as the head coach of Bundesliga side Mainz in January 2021.

He inherited a side struggling in the relegation zone, but led Mainz to safety in the second half of the season before presiding over successive top-half finishes in his two full seasons in charge. He stepped down by mutual consent last November, with Mainz having made a poor start to the season, and has remained out of work since. But he could soon be back in the dugout in Germany.

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Paul Heckingbottom

Another Sunderland candidate said to be holding talks with another club this week is Paul Heckingbottom.

He was reportedly set to be interviewed by Plymouth Argyle, one of four Championship clubs - including Sunderland - who are on the lookout for a new boss.

Plymouth were keen on Liam Rosenior but were knocked back by the 39-year-old after his Hull City sacking. Argyle want Championship experience and have now turned to Heckingbottom, who has been out of work since being sacked by Sheffield United in December.

Heckingbottom is admired by Sunderland's hierarchy and was a candidate to take charge when Alex Neil got the job.

Heckingbottom is a Championship promotion winner and has experience of working with young players having previously been in charge of Sheffield United's Under-23s.

Liam Rosenior

It's not known whether Rosenior is a candidate for the Sunderland vacancy but he's available after his surprise Hull exit and he's undoubtedly appealing to clubs after his fine work at the MKM Stadium.

He guided Hull away from relegation trouble after taking charge and only missed out on a top six finish by three points this season but was sacked just three months after signing a new three-year deal.

Explaining the decision, Acun Ilicali said: "Liam is a very good coach and will be very successful. There are so many positive things.

"At the end of the day, me and my team are dreaming of something for this club and there is a football style that we want to see on the pitch.

"Liam's football philosophy is very good and may be successful but we didn't see it suiting our character for the future."

Rosenior clearly wasn't on Sunderland's radar when the search for a head coach got underway, but if the Black Cats failed to land one or two targets, could he come into their thinking?

Could unnamed candidates emerge?

It's extremely probable that Sunderland are also assessing a candidate or candidates whose names have been kept under wraps.

If that was the case, in all probability they'd be overseas contenders. Whether more names will emerge in the coming days or weeks is unclear at this stage, but there's every chance if - as detailed above - other candidates take jobs elsewhere.

It's unlikely at this stage that Sunderland's hierarchy would consider head coach candidates who aren't yet on their radar but, as proved by the Rosenior developments at Hull, unforeseen twists can result in surprise availability.

With each passing week, there's more pressure on Sunderland to get not only the right man but a head coach who, given the mood in the fanbase after the disappointment of recent months, excites the supporters.