Southampton interim manager Tonda Eckert will be in the dugout for the next three Championship matches before a decision is made on his future at the club.
Sky Sports journalist Lyall Thomas added that the German tactician is bidding to land the role on a full-time basis, which makes these next three games an important audition for him.
He has already won his first two games in charge of the club, beating QPR 2-1 and Sheffield Wednesday 3-1, after stepping in because of Will Still’s departure.
Why Southampton need an upgrade on Will Still
The Saints need to find a manager who can be an upgrade on their previous head coach, as obvious as it sounds, because his track record before coming to St. Mary’s did not suggest that he was an obvious candidate.
Of course, finishing in midtable with two different Ligue 1 clubs as a 33-year-old head coach is impressive, given that it is one of the best leagues in Europe, but each manager has different skills that suit certain environments.
Southampton, from the outside looking in, appeared to need a leader who could galvanise the club after such a dismal relegation from the Premier League, whilst also having the coaching outlook required to mount a promotion push.
25/26 (Championship)
13
12 (21st)
24/25 (Ligue 1)
34
52 (8th)
23/24 (Ligue 1)
31
40 (11th)
22/23 (Ligue 1)
28
43 (11th)
20/21 (Pro League)
13
17 (9th)
17/18 (Challenger Pro League)
9
22 (3rd)
As you can see in the table above, Still, aside from nine games as an interim years before his first major job, had never been in an environment where he was expected to win consistently and be at the top of the table.
That lack of alignment between coaching and expectation may have been a contributing factor to Southampton ending up in 21st place in the table, with the benefit of hindsight.
Now, in what may be a controversial suggestion, Sport Republic could replace Eckert and find an upgrade on Still by returning to Russell Martin to hire him as their next manager.
Why Southampton should hire Russell Martin
It was reported earlier this month that the former Rangers boss still has admirers in the boardroom at St. Mary’s and it has been claimed that some first-team players and staff are open to his return, suggesting that he could be an option in their managerial search.
Like him or loathe him, Martin is a good communicator and can lead a group when there is buy-in and potential for positive momentum with results, which may not have worked out at Premier League level, or at Rangers.
The 39-year-old tactician’s style of play was described as “successful” and a “joy to watch” by Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta. Whilst they may have been untrue in the Premier League, it was certainly the case in the Championship, which is where Southampton are now.
Pass accuracy
87.7%
1st
Passes into the penalty area
594
1st
Progressive passes
2556
1st
Shot-creating actions
1255
1st
xG
79.8
2nd
Points per game
1.89
4th
When the Saints were promoted under Martin in the 2023/24 campaign, his team were incredible offensively, as shown in the table, above, as they went on to win the play-offs.
This shows that the ex-Swansea boss has the relevant experience required to take on the job at hand, as Southampton look to get promoted back to the top-flight, because he has been there and done it, which was not the case for Still in the summer.
There are major question marks over his Premier League capabability, due to one win in 16 matches last season in the division, which is why it would be interesting to see if he would consider a deal until the end of the season.
Bringing Martin in on a short-term deal until the end of this season to see if he can spark a reaction out of the players and use his experience to guide the team towards the play-offs, before a longer-term appointment is made with the Premier League in mind, could be a shrewd way to go about it.
Southampton face 'complex' Tonda Eckert visa issues as permission granted
The Saints have been working behind-the-scenes.
ByCharlie Smith