Former Sunderland defender Joel Lynch opens up on what went wrong under Phil Parkinson
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Lynch – who was released from Sunderland last summer – is still a free agent and is looking for a new club, having had recent trial spells at Southend United and Bolton Wanderers.
Reflecting on his Sunderland spell under former boss Phil Parkinson, Lynch spoke openly about the break down in the relationship, claiming he didn’t get the support he felt he needed at the time.
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Hide Ad“I was going through a tough time at Sunderland and I remember going to talk to him about it and he just didn’t give me the support I needed off the pitch,” he told Football League World.
“We just didn’t get on and I think he thought I wasn’t bothered when in reality I was going through a tough time.
“I told him that I wasn’t doing too good mentally and I think he just took it the wrong way.
“I was just down at the time and I wasn’t happy with how I was playing; I’d just had a new baby and was away from home.”
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Hide AdLynch has also revealed he has spoken with some of his former teammates since Lee Johnson took charge with the squad very positive about the new head coach – and Sunderland’s chances of success this season.
Sunderland are in the play-off places and still have automatic promotion in their sights this season, with the club also reaching the final of the Papa John’s Trophy.
He added: “I’ve spoken to a couple of the lads recently and they’ve said great stuff about him, but again it’s just about the fact that it’s such a high-pressured job, it’s literally win or nothing, they’re so desperate to get back to where they deserve to be.
“The squad they have is much better than any of the other clubs in League One I think, and they need to get back to the Championship under the new manager because I don’t think the last manager [Phil Parkinson] was the guy to do it.”