Next Sunderland manager: Sam Allardyce and David Moyes among managers being linked with replacing Dick Advocaat

Real Madrid assistant Paul Clement and former Sunderland striker Kevin Phillips are also in the running

Sam Allardyce (GETTY IMAGES)

Sunderland are on the hunt for a new manager after Dick Advocaat left the club following the expiry of his contract.

Despite leading the Black Cats to Premier League survival, the Dutch manager elected not to prolong his contract with the club even though they offered him an extended stay, having originally agreed a deal until the end of the season.

It means that Sunderland owner Ellis Short will be on the lookout for a fifth manager in the space of just over two years, with the dismissal of Martin O'Neill in March 2013 paving the way for Paolo Di Canio, Gus Poyet and most recently Advocaat to come and go at the Stadium of Light.

So who could take the vacancy at the North-west club and bid to keep them in the top flight next season?

Click on the gallery below to see the candidates in the running for the job.

Allardyce is currently the bookmakers' favourite, although whether he would favour an immediate return to football after being released by West Ham remains uncertain.