Despite a sensational season which saw Sunderland narrowly miss out on the Championship playoff final, rumours are rife about Tony Mowbray's future at the Stadium of Light.
What's the latest on Mowbray's future at Sunderland?
The former Blackburn Rovers boss took over in the northeast following Alex Neil's shock move to Stoke City earlier in the season and has delivered far better results than many Sunderland fans would have dreamed of at the start of the campaign.
Last season's promotion from League One, via the playoffs, suggested that this season would be all about ensuring stability in the second tier, especially after losing the influential Neil.
However, Mowbray would go one further and took a depleted Black Cats squad into the top six on the final day, despite missing key players such as Ross Stewart and Danny Batth through injury.
Further injury concerns meant that Trai Hume would partner Luke O'Nien at centre-back in the away leg at Kenilworth Road, with natural wingers Lynden Gooch and Patrick Roberts featuring at full-back, so Mowbray cannot really be blamed for the defeat.
Remarkably, talkSPORT are claiming that the 59-year-old is now fighting to save his job at Sunderland, with three young European managers on a potential shortlist to replace him in the summer.
The same report claims that RB Salzburg boss Matthias Jaissle is currently top of that shortlist, with Francesco Farioli and ex-Barnsley boss Gerhard Struber also options for the Black Cats.
While it would be incredibly harsh to sack Mowbray following such an impressive campaign, the prospect of hiring a top young manager such as Jaissle is surely a hugely exciting one for the Black Cats, with the 35-year-old perhaps reminiscent of former Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann.
Who is Sunderland manager target Matthias Jaissle?
The German coach spent time working in RB Leipzig's academy before he was even 30, and he earned a move to Danish side Brondby, where he worked as an assistant manager for two seasons.
He then took on his first role at RB Salzburg as manager of the U18 side, where he earned a remarkable average of 2.78 points per game across 23 fixtures in charge, which saw him earn his first senior management role at FC Liefering in Austria.
Another successful spell would follow, as he averaged 2.12 points per game between January and June 2021, before he was deemed ready to take on the job at RB Salzburg following Jesse Marsch's upgrade to RB Leipzig.
He has since gone on to average a phenomenal 2.27 points per game, winning the Austrian title and cup thus far, which emphasises the winning mentality he could bring to the Stadium of Light.
Winning titles at such a young age is rarely seen in football management but Nagelsmann would achieve it at Bayern, having also made his name at Hoffenheim and another of Red Bull's sides in Germany.
The similarities are apparent and while it would be a big gamble to replace Mowbray, Sunderland could just find themselves a gem if they appoint Jaissle this summer.