Ex-£6m Sunderland, Wigan and Middlesbrough man linked with non-league switch

Former Sunderland, Wigan Athletic and Middlesbrough midfielder Lee Cattermole is among the favourites to take the Hartlepool United job.

After breaking into Boro’s first team aged just 17 against local rivals Newcastle United, Cattermole joined the Latics before moving on to Sunderland in 2009 for a fee of around £6million under former manager Steve Bruce.

The battling midfielder spent 10 seasons on Wearside, eight of which came in the Premier League before the Black Cats suffered relegation in consecutive seasons. Cattermole then moved on to Dutch outfit VVV-Venlo and cemented himself as a fan favourite before Covid-19 hit and derailed his time on the continent.

The club decided against renewing the midfielder’s contract and Cattermole announced his retirement from playing after nearly 400 appearances. The 35-year-old has been working towards his qualifications for some time and has experience working at his hometown club Middlesbrough with the youth teams and first team.

There has been a vacancy at Victoria Park since December 30, when John Askey was axed as manager after a winless run extended to six games and Cattermole has emerged as one of the favourites to take the non-league job.

Hartlepool United sit 16th in the National League table, four points above the relegation zone with former Sunderland striker Kevin Phillips - who has managerial experience with South Shields - has also been linked with the role.

Cattermole made 395 senior appearances in all competitions during his 15 seasons as a professional footballer before his retirement back in 2020.