A new name has entered the hat in the eyes of the bookies and he has now been installed as the favourite to be the next manager of Saints.

Quique Sanchez Flores former Watford manager and up until April the boss of Espanyol has come from nowhere to be the new favourite to take over from Mark Hughes as Saints boss.

The odds on Paulo Sousa have gone back up to 10/1 and you can get better prices on virtually all the contenders than you could only a few hours ago.

Someone somewhere has tipped off somebody and a flurry of bets has gone on the Spaniard.

The 53 year old has a good track record in Spain where he as managed Valencia, Atletico Madrid and Espanyol whom he spent two seasons with up until April of this year.

He also managed Benfica in Portugal as well as a season with Watford who in 2015/16 after replacing Slaviša Jokanović who had taken the Hornets back to the Premier League, his one season saw him steer them to a comfortable position in mid table as well as an FA Cup semi final.

He has the experience on both the continent and crucially that season in England and it seems that as far as the bookies are concerned this is a deal that could be done quickly.

Photo: Action Images

SanMarco added 22:07 - Dec 2 Infinitely better than Sousa certainly. Is he any good organising useless central defenders??
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SaintBen added 22:11 - Dec 2 Of all the names mentioned, I think Flores has the strongest background - He has won honours at numerous clubs, and I remember Watford playing good football under him... We were successful with the last ex-Espanyol manager we hired ;-)
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ronan006 added 00:13 - Dec 3 Yeah but Ben , people said we were successful with the last guy called Mauricio when Peligrino was hired..
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TimSaint added 00:53 - Dec 3 Not wishing to put too much of a dampener on proceedings, but he was SACKED by Espanol after a poor run of results !! Sounds a bit like why our current manager was relieved from his previous role and will be the reason for his impending departure !!
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KriSaint added 01:36 - Dec 3 Oh no. Not another south european dude. I seriously prefer a British manager and one in particular, Brendan Rodgers. In fact, I consider this a pretty realistic appointment. Which better british club is a realistic option for Brendan? He would love having the opportunity to rebuild first team and academy in Saints´ high quality facilities. A win-win scenario for man and club until proven otherwise. Who in their right state of mind can seriously disagree. There is only one non-british name that interests me. Michael Laudrup. Portugise, french and spanish wimps who think they were sent from God and can´t pronounce words like ´think´ and ´player` correctly after months of practising - no thanks.

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DSM added 02:28 - Dec 3 Please, KriSaint, not another Dane! Don't you think it's enough with Vestergaard, who once again proved to be slow in more than one way? I'm danish myself, and trust me, Michael Laudrup IS another wimp, with very little succes as a manager. Brendan Rodgers get my vote - among the realistic names. If we could pick any manager, Eddie Howe would be the perfect choice.
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highfield49 added 07:44 - Dec 3 Rather ironic KriSaint that arguably the best manager we've ever had couldn't do any interviews in English and spoke to the media through an interpreter. The only criteria for me is that whoever replaces Hughes can move us up the table and clear of relegation.
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SanMarco added 08:51 - Dec 3 Good point Highfield - 2 of the 3 best managers we've had in my lifetime were foreign.
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kenis added 08:52 - Dec 3 Why would Rodgers come to Saints and potentially undermine the reputation he’s built at Celtic? I’m sure he sees his next move as a champions league club. It was surprising he didn’t go to Arsenal, maybe he was their second choice. Plus after his comments about us when buying up our players, why would we want him anyway, he’d be using us as a stepping stone just as much as anyone else. The reason Hughes, Moyes, Pulis, Pardew etc are no longer successful in the premier league is because of how “European” and tactical the league is now, that means an Italian, Spanish, Portuguese or South American is the preferred choice among clubs. Koeman (who had direct LaLiga experience) and Hodgson (Italy and cross Europe experience) have been exceptions. Do we want Dyche? Could Howe ever be successful away from the Cherries?

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KriSaint added 09:03 - Dec 3 @DSM - Eddie Howe is certainly also on my wish list. I just don´t think Bournemouth letting him go and him becoming Saints manager is realistic. I am equally annoyed with dane Jannick Vestergaard and the weight of his huge ass, but I genuinely think M. Laudrup is a dane to be relied on as manager for Saints. He did very well for Swansea before falling out with the board and has won at least 3 major trophies (The League Cup with Swansea + the double with Brondby). Highfield49 -

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KriSaint added 09:13 - Dec 3 @Highfield49 - I´m not sure if I agree that Maurizio P. was the best Saints manager ever. And he wasn´t particularly loyal, was he? I don´t think he will win any trophies with Spurs tbh..
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aceofthebase added 10:05 - Dec 3 HUGHES is now history. Will the next object of Saints fans hatred please step up.
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SanMarco added 10:35 - Dec 3 Now he has gone I do really hope we have someone ready to take over. If not why not keep him until we do? Flores it is according to the bookies.
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SaintBrock added 10:41 - Dec 3 I would have thought Mark Hughes would be in with a shout
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davepid added 11:45 - Dec 3 His time as a player disappointed and now his time as our manager equally disappointing. I seem to recall he described his move to us as a player as being a mistake. No doubt he will blame others for his very poor managerial record.
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bstokesaint added 12:11 - Dec 3 Please can we just appoint a manager on the up with a proven record. We need to seriously avoid managers who have a record of sackings and who can only aspire to mid table or even worse, survival. We need to do better than that. This isn't a joke anymore. Our fans are becoming more and more disenfranchised.
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BoondockSaint added 15:06 - Dec 3 Whoever it is has his work cut out for him: Fitness. Shooting accuracy. Mental toughness. Getting rid of dead wood who don't really care. Finding players who want to come to Saints but don't see the team as a stepping stone. Prying open Mr. Gao's wallet. If Rodgers ever thought about leaving Celtic, his family and friends should stage an intervention! That is the best set-up for a manager in all football! Biggest (Richest) team in the league. Only have to compete with one other (occasionally two) Attracts talent easily. Wins league almost every year. Wins Scottish FA Cup almost every year. Plays in Champions League every year. Fans like him (even has a friendly/banter relationship with most Rangers fans). He should ride that horse until retirement (piling up the bonus money).

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SaintBrock added 18:43 - Dec 3 Events seem to be moving much faster than this website
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DPeps added 19:10 - Dec 3 Nick must in mourning for Hughes Hasenhuttl should be a significant upgrade on Hughes
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schatfield added 19:14 - Dec 3 looks like Ralph Hasenhutt is the hot fave to take the job now and would be a great placement if we can get him - likes to play pressing football and would be entertaining at least @aceofthebase - next object for fans to hate is Mr Gao and the board of course! some fans have already begun
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aceofthebase added 22:58 - Dec 3 If Kelvin doesn't get a win this Wednesday will he go down as the most unsuccessful manager in Saints history? ( Pretty poor attempt at light-hearted humour)
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SanMarco added 23:57 - Dec 3 Well Big Sam is England's most successful manager with 100% wins isn't he - so Kelvin could do the same, unlikely but we may get the new manager bounce for him and the new bloke. I like the idea of having this hot favourite as manager - I will start learning how to say/spell his name if/when it is confirmed...
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dirk_doone added 01:49 - Dec 4 Bring on the Austrian! It's such a relief that, after the progressively worse managerial appointments under Reed of Puel>Pellegrino>Hughes we can get back to a good managerial appointment like Hassenhutl now that Reed has finally been removed.
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SaintBrock added 11:48 - Dec 4 If Saints beat Spurs they might be tempted to give the job to Kelvin so we need to get beaten! Can't believe I said that.
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SaintBrock added 11:50 - Dec 4 ...but will he get a work permit post-Brexit or be deported in April?
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