Report: Sunderland in talks with Sam Allardyce over manager role

Make way for Big Sam.

The burly northerner, who left the West Ham hotseat when his contract wasn't renewed in May, opened talks with Sunderland over the managerial role vacated by Dick Advocaat, according to BBC Sport.

The Black Cats look to find the right man before their trip to West Bromwich Albion on Oct. 17, and the former Bolton and Blackburn boss, who also played for the club between 1980 and 1981, has emerged as one of the early front-runners for the Stadium of Light hotseat.

The 60-year-old's no-nonsense approach and vast experience certainly makes him a decent candidate, and Gustavo Poyet, Advocaat's predecessor at Sunderland, has backed Allardyce for the role.

"He had an experience before in the north east," Poyet said. "He knows the Premier League inside out and he knows exactly what a team needs to do to stay in the Premier League."