Better than O'Neil: "Very direct" boss a main contender for Southampton job
Southampton are now two wins from two in the Championship without Will Still occupying the Saints’ hot seat.
Amazingly, this is the first time the South Coast titans have won back-to-back league contests since April 2024, with a miserable bottom-of-the-table finish last season not helping this dismal record, which was then being followed up by Still, unfortunately, looking out of his depth at St. Mary’s.
Now only seven points off the Championship playoff spots, it does feel as if the Saints could mount a promotion push if they can get their next managerial appointment spot on.
All signs are pointing to Gary O’Neil being Still’s successor, as the 42-year-old attempts to put his previous Portsmouth ties to one side as a player, to potentially take over Pompey’s fierce rivals…
The latest on Southampton's manager hunt
The ex-Wolverhampton Wanderers boss is the current frontrunner for the Saints vacancy, with reports in recent days noting that they were trying to conclude a deal having established contact with O’Neil.
However, the unemployed head coach is also being considered by Southampton’s Championship rivals, Norwich City, with the Canaries previously having O’Neil on their books as a midfield star before he retired.
Southampton haven’t just been linked with O’Neil. A return for Russell Martin to the St. Mary’s dugout is also being speculated, after his disastrous time at Rangers was cut short.
Moreover, the current interim manager steering the ship steadily in Tonda Eckert shouldn’t be ruled out, either.
As the German made it two wins from two in a caretaker position, it was reported by Football Insider that he is one of the ‘main’ and ‘key’ contenders under consideration to be given the job.
It would be a risky appointment, with Eckert more used to coaching U21s football than managing in the senior game.
But, to get a disgruntled fanbase back on side, it might well be a better move than going after O’Neil’s services.
Why Eckert could be a better appointment than O'Neil
Of course, in O’Neil’s favour, he has managed at the very top of the English game and succeeded in flashes.
He managed to galvanise the Old Gold during the 2023/24 season, even as the likes of Ruben Neves and Nathan Collins jumped ship, with 13 league wins helping Wolves to a comfortable 14th spot in the unforgiving division. Could he be that same stabilising force on the South Coast that pushes Southampton out of their current mess?
However, when the going got tough at Molineux after a bright 23/24 campaign, everything unravelled at a worryingly quick pace, with just two wins from 16 games in charge the following season – which saw Wolves leak 40 goals – seeing him be unsurprisingly put out of his misery.
Chairman Jeff Shi even stated that he cut ties “too late”, with the mood around St. Mary’s no doubt souring if Southampton’s form was to fall off a cliff under his guidance, owing, again, to his strong Fratton Park loyalties.
Southampton could look to continuity instead, in bumping Eckert up to first-team managerial duties, with the 32-year-old much in the same mould as Still before him in being a new and exciting breed of head coach.
Games managed
12
Wins
7
Draws
4
Losses
1
Goals scored
26
Goals conceded
18
Said to favour a 3-4-2-1 formation, Eckert has also largely been a success at the Saints to date, away from picking up two wins from two as the interim fill-in, with five wins and four draws also collected, working closely with the rising stars coming through at Southampton in the U21 ranks.
He has also been a transformative figure for the senior players to latch on to as well, with Adam Armstrong already picking up an assist against Queens Park Rangers and a goal against the Owls under his short reign to date, with statement summer signing Finn Azaz also on the scoresheet under Eckert last match to pick up his first strike in Southampton red and white since late August.
Azaz would even publicly praise the 32-year-old after that 3-1 victory for being a “very detailed” boss, with the feel-good times hopefully continuing if he can collect more wins.
Surely, if more wins are secured, Eckert will be handed the permanent gig.
After all, the promotion-winning Martin was just a year older than Eckert when he was given his first main job at Milton Keynes Dons, with a move for O’Neil just feeling a lot more stale.
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