Poll reveals just how unpopular Phil Parkinson is at Sunderland - with fans urging Stewart Donald to act

The Black Cats slipped to an 89th-minute defeat to Gillingham at Priestfield Stadium yesterday, leaving Parkinson’s side mid-table, having won just two games in 11 since his appointment last October.

Jon McLaughlin was given the nod in favour of Lee Burge for the clash, whilst Laurens De Bock, Alim Ozturk, Tom Flanagan, George Dobson and Marc McNulty were all recalled to no avail, prompting further questions from fans.

Since the 52-year-old’s arrival, Sunderland have exited the Carabao Cup, FA Cup and Leasing.com Trophy whilst dropping to 11th in League One.

After the game, popular podcasters Wise Men Say took to Twitter to gauge opinion on whether the ex-Bolton Wanderers boss should be allowed to continue.

They asked: “Should he [Parkinson] stay or should he go?”

The tweet received over three-thousand votes and 49 comments, with Sunderland fans mostly unanimous in their opinion that Parkinson should be sacked: 94% voting in favour of managerial change, with 6% believing that the board should give him time.

On his Stadium of Light arrival, Parkinson signed a two-and-a-half-year deal and has since added Steve Parkin, Nick Allamby and Andrew Taylor to his backroom staff – a fact fans were keen to point out on social media.

One fan explained: “They let him bring a new coach in this week. He ain’t going anywhere,” whilst another added: “Sunderland will be lucky to get over 20,000 [through the turnstiles] on Boxing day if Parkinson is still at the club.”