Championship-bound Sunderland yesterday confirmed that manager David Moyes had resigned from his role with immediate effect.

The former Everton and Manchester United boss was appointed as Sam Allardyce’s successor last summer but was unable to pull off another miraculous escape, as their ten-year stay in the Premier League came to an end this season.

Moyes’ men won just six of their 38 league games to finish bottom of the pile with just 24 points, a full 16 adrift of safety.

Their relegation was confirmed back on April 29 following a 1-0 home defeat to Bournemouth, and in recent times the Sunderland faithful have made it clear their feelings towards manager Moyes, with his side meekly surrendering their status as a top-flight club this term.

However, attentions now turn to who could replace Moyes at the Stadium of Light, and here are THREE candidates who could take over at the North East giants this summer…

Alex Neil

Sacked by Norwich City in March after a frustrating Championship campaign, 35-year-old Alex Neil will be looking to get back into the game as soon as possible.

And Sunderland might give him that opportunity.

The former Hamilton and Canaries boss experienced the highs and lows of a second tier manager during his stint at Carrow Road, taking Norwich to the top of the division in mid-October, before embarking on a run of nine defeats in 12 to fall down the table, and ultimately lose his job.

He’s experienced coming down from the Premier League and rebuilding before, and that is surely what Sunderland need right now – Neil could be an option for the Black Cats.

Aitor Karanka

Aitor Karanka lost his job at North East rivals Middlesbrough back in March after leading the club to just four Premier League wins from their 27 matches, but he could be the ideal man to rebuild Sunderland.

And that’s because he undertook a similar job at the Riverside Stadium, as Boro were languishing in the Championship with very little indication that they would go up when he took over in November 2013, but he led the side to fourth in the 2014/15 campaign, before securing automatic promotion the following year.

Yes, this season will be a blot on his CV, but there’s little doubting his capabilities in the Championship, and that could see the former Real Madrid assistant become a genuine contender for the Sunderland job.

Alan Pardew

Alan Pardew has been out of work since losing his job at Crystal Palace back in December 2016, but may look to get back into the game at Sunderland.

The 55-year-old has vast amounts of experience in management, from taking Reading from the third tier to the Championship play-offs back in 2002 and 2003, and then West Ham from the despair of losing a play-off final to promotion the following season, and then leading Newcastle to fifth in the Premier League in 2012.

That’s experience at Championship level and Premier League level, and may be exactly the man Sunderland need to get them back on track after a testing few years.