safc.com take a look at the managers that have led the club during the Stadium of Light era.
Next up, Howard Wilkinson...
Former Leeds United boss Howard Wilkinson came to the Stadium of Light as a left-field appointment that no-one in the media had predicted.
Coming with him was Stoke City boss Steve Cotterill, and the management team were tasked with trying to turn the sinking ship around.
Results were initially good, with the side losing one, drawing two and winning one, while also winning 3-2 at Highbury in the League Cup.
The win in the Premier League came against Tottenham Hostpur at the Stadium of Light, with Kevin Phillips and Tore Andre Flo getting the goals.
That partnership was seen as the potential future for our season, though it would be the only time that both strikers would score in the same game.
A 0-0 away draw at Liverpool left the team in 17th having seen a quite impressive uplift in form, but that early run was followed by four straight defeats which left Wilkinson’s side in 19th place.
Liverpool came to the Stadium of Light in mid-December and were beaten 2-1 thanks to a late Michael Proctor goal – but that win was the final victory of the season.
Wilkinson and Cotterill left the club in March after a 1-0 away defeat at Fulham which left the team bottom of the division having not won yet in 2003.
The Wilkinson era at Sunderland will forever be remembered as a disappointing one, as the team plummeted to a then record-low 19 points.