Richard Mennear's tour diary: Moyes to hold press conference on Monday, French lessons via TV

The former Manchester United and Everton boss took charge just a week ago on the morning of the game with Rotherham United before the squad flew out to France.

His official unveiling will be on Monday morning, when the regional and national press - including television and radio - will be asking him about the burning issues facing the club.

Moyes has not been conducting media duties this week in the south-east of France, a chance instead to fully focus on getting to know his new players and working on transfer business.

Those journalists that travelled to France have, though, been briefly introduced to Moyes and he came across very well, positive and determined to do his very best for Sunderland.

Ellis Short made no secret of the fact he had tried to appoint Moyes on numerous occasions in the past.

He finally has his man.

And with Moyes' vast experience in the Premier League - however turbulent his spell at Old Trafford was - plus his time in Spain with Real Sociedad, Sunderland couldn't have secured a better manager.

Today sees the team play Montpellier at the Stade Jacques Forestier, in Aix-les-Bains.

It is a change of scenery for us, having spent the last five days in Evian-les-Bains on the banks of Lake Geneva.

The next stop takes us around an hour and a half's drive away, south of Geneva for the game with the French Ligue 1 side.

Sunderland's toughest test of pre-season yet, with the final warm-up game against Borussia Dortmund to come next Friday.

And then the real action begins, away at Manchester City two weeks today.

Sunderland, by then, will hopefully have some fresh faces in the squad - they certainly need them.

Moyes may not have been conducting media duties this week but he has been glued to his phone, along with chief executive Martin Bain, with both working hard on transfers.

Plenty of work is going on behind the scenes to bring in the four or five quality new signings Sunderland - and their supporters - desire.

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Our home for the week, Hotel Continental, is a lovely little hotel.

A two-star slap bang in the middle of Evian-les-Bains which has everything we need - including excellent WiFi. A godsend to us journalists.

It has also afforded me the chance to brush up on my French this week given the limited English channels on the television inside the room.

Aside from the BBC News Channel, BBC One and BBC Two the only other option is CBBC.

A bit more practice is needed, mind, before I can conduct a full conversation in French with the likes of Younes Kaboul and Lamine Kone.

Au revoir. See, fluent.