SAM ALLARDYCE (11-8)

Pros: The former Sunderland defender is freely available, having been sacked by Newcastle in January.

He boasts extensive Premier League experience, and repeatedly kept Bolton in the upper echelons of the table. He was on a three-man shortlist before Roy Keane was appointed.

Cons: His links with Newcastle might make him unpopular with the Sunderland support. He is associated with an unattractive long-ball game that turned the Magpies fans against him.

He likes to have a huge backroom staff, and that would come at a cost.

ALAN CURBISHLEY (8-1)

Pros: The ex- Charlton and West Ham boss is another manager who is currently out of work.

He regularly performed wonders at Charlton Athletic, and is no stranger to operating in the bottom half of the Premier League. He tends to produce sides who play attractive, attacking football.

Cons: His time at West Ham was unsuccessful, and he looked uncomfortable away from Charlton’s smallclub environment. He has never managed outside London and may be reluctant to move to the North-East.

He would hardly be a bigname successor to Keane.

GORDON STRACHAN (10-1)

Pros: The Scotsman has proved a major success at Celtic, winning three Scottish Premier League titles. His bubbly personality means he is the “box office” character Niall Quinn says he would like to appoint. He is on a rolling one-year contract, and would be relatively cheap to appoint.

Cons: It may be difficult to persuade Strachan to leave Celtic, where he is guaranteed European football every year.

His time in England was hardly a success, with unsuccessful spells at both Coventry and Southampton.

DAVID O’LEARY (10-1)

Pros: The Irishman is free to start tomorrow, and would extend Sunderland’s links with the Emerald Isle. He was lauded for bringing through a crop of talented youngsters during his time at Leeds, and is desperate to make a return to the Premier League.

Cons: He has been out of football for quite a while now, and his reputation was seriously damaged by the messy end to his time at Elland Road. He is thought to have an uneasy relationship with Niall Quinn, and his appointment would be unlikely to go down well with Sunderland supporters.

MICK McCARTHY (22-1)

Pros: The Irishman won the Manager of the Month award for the Championship yesterday, and is doing great things with Wolves. He knows Sunderland inside out and would slip into the position seamlessly, something that could be important given the proximity of the transfer window.

Cons: He is widely held to be responsible for the worst season in Sunderland’s history, when they finished with a record Premier League points low. He has excelled at Championship level in the past, but struggled to handle life in the top-flight.

Other odds: Phil Brown 13/2; Michael Laudrup 20/1; Paul Jewell, Lawrie Sanchez, Jeff Kenna 22/1; Gerard Houllier 25/1; Billy Davies 28/1; Slaven Bilic 33/1; Didier Deschamp 33/1; Bryan Robson, Steve Bruce, Lee Clark, Steve McClaren 40/1; Ally McCoist, Terry Butcher 50/1; Kevin Keegan, Niall Quinn 100/1