Uruguayan will take charge of his first-ever Premier League contest this weekend.
Recently appointed Sunderland manager Gus Poyet admits that the buildup to his first match in charge of the club has been a “nightmare” due to the recent international break that has meant the Uruguayan has barely met any of his new players, the Daily Mail reports.
The former Brighton & Hove Albion boss replaced the sacked Paolo Di Canio in the Stadium of Light hot seat earlier this month, however, Saturday’s trip to take on Swansea City in the Premier League at the Liberty Stadium will actually be his debut as a manager in the top flight.
However, the 45-year-old’s preparations for the encounter in South Wales have been affected by the fact that nine first-team regulars are yet to even meet the new man at the helm on Wearside.
“I have spoken to a few of the guys who have been away on international duty. It’s not nice for the players to be away when a new manager comes in,” said Poyet.
“They will think ‘there’s a new manager who has come in, I haven’t been around, so I am going to be out of the team’. It’s nothing to do with that, nothing like that.
“I want them all to be relaxed about me being here when they come back to training. I want them to just get themselves back here normal and fit.
“The Thursday and Friday before the Swansea game will be unbelievable for them. The amount of information they are going to get is incredible. It will be a nightmare for the players coming back.
“They will all be together for the first time. I need them all in to convince them to be ready. It is going to be very demanding for them over those days, mentally, not physically as much.
“We need them all to know what has been happening over the last eight days and to be prepared for the Swansea game.”
It is vital for Sunderland to get off to a good start under Poyet, with the club looking like facing a tough season of fighting relegation after a poor start to the campaign under his predecessor Di Canio.