The last two days have been ones of frustration for fans of Southampton Football Club, after a toothless display at Wolverhampton Wanderers, many were convinced that this would surely be the end of the line for the Saints manager.

According to footballinsider247.com those making the decisions at St Mary's have come to one today (Monday) they report:

"Sources say the stance of club chiefs as of Monday morning is they are currently willing to keep Martin on at St Mary’s Stadium but they will be left with no choice but to replace the Scot if their poor form continues."

Although this should be made clear that this is only a rumour and there seems to be little substance to it as of yet, it will infuriate Saints supporters who having watched their team lose all but two of the eleven Premier League games played so far feel that enough is enough.

They have watched a team that is playing a type of game to a level they are not good enough to play and subsequently are constantly getting exposed, they see a team that on Saturday, against the worst defence in the Premier League failed to get an attempt on target, they see a manager who should have learned lessons and adapted his tactics, but hasn't done so, they see a manager who desperately chops and changes hist team and makes poor substitutions and if that is all not enough they see a manager whose team is losing confidence and whom are going backwards.

They are asking just how long is a poor run of form before the manager is sacked ?

If a worse start to a top flight season in living memory wasn't good enough, perhaps the worst start in the club's history should have been.

The start made in 1993/94 season by Ian Branfoot was bad enough, but even that was better than this season with Branfoot getting 5 points out of his first 11, he managed to win his 12th game a televised fixture against Newcastle 2-1 to save his job.

Likewise the "Great Escape" season of 1998/99 even that awful start saw 6 points out of the first 11 games, perhaps these are the bench marks that Sport Republic are looking to, when they give Martin more time.

2008/09 season when the club were heading towards Administration and Jan Poortvliet was hired to oversee what was basically the club's academy team, saw a better start with 3 wins and two draws out of the first 11 games giving us a point per game average.

Things are really that dire and the problem for most Saints supporters they can see little changing, we are not cutting out the errors, we are still playing a rigid type of game with no leeway to go off piste sometimes and have a shot or clear the ball.

We thought we had taken a little step forward when we had beaten Everton, but truth is nothing had changed and we are now getting worse in the way we are playing.

So the above headline is bad news for most Southampton supporters, although perhaps it could be good news, we have an international break, those in charge have some leeway to take stock of the situation and sound out a replacement, they have a week's grace to re evaluate and consider options.

The fact that the sources are saying he is staying are perhaps the first signs of a smoke screen being put out to let the club quietly get on with things, with the next 5 fixtures being tough ones against 5 of the top 10 teams as it currently stands, I cannot see that waiting for these games to be played is going to do anything other than leave us less games to pull out of trouble.

All Photos Via Reuters

kingolaf added 15:15 - Nov 11 We are being run by idiots. Why can’t we just be a normal football club rather than always trying to be pioneers who know better than anyone else. I am sick of it. Supporting the club isn’t enjoyable any more.
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sandywelsh added 15:24 - Nov 11 Has he gone yet?
2

DorsetIan added 15:28 - Nov 11 Kingolaf is spot on. Idiots. Do they really think that they're going to learn anything new from the next run of games, or pick up any points! He's had 11 games to make this work. 6 games was minumum, 8 was fair, 10 was generous. They're just dithering again like they did with Ralph and Jones. (And with Selles they just let it slide and slde).
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wessexman added 15:36 - Nov 11 Unfortunately, RM is only part of the problem. SR have not exactly covered themselves in glory during their tumultuous tenure. I have no insight into their thinking but, should we go down as looks more likely by the week, do they really think we can bounce straight back up? Our squad is Championship at best with about 3 or 4 Premiership quality players. I sincerely hope our board can finally muster some common sense and guile and use this international break to try and salvage this season as best as they can and at least give the manager next season something to work with. As for RM, I have stopped listening.

12

StRipper added 15:37 - Nov 11 Its on record that Rasmus Ankersen derides fans. He probably finds it amusing the situation that Saints are in and that those ungrateful pleb supporters aren't happy about it. Either way, he will still keep his job for repeated failure and receive his fat payments for incompetence, when we are relegated again. Still, we'll have funded the success of Goztepe and Valencianne with our EPL cash and Sports Republic will probably be comfortably in the black when we sell on anything good or with potential in our squad when we go down.

1

Centurion added 15:38 - Nov 11 If you take it at face value and the board is giving RM more time to improve the football and results, when there is little evidence that this will happen, then they must be keeping him for other reasons.
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bartley41 added 15:43 - Nov 11 Currently 4 points after 11 games, so what can we expect in the next 3 games, Liverpool, Brighton and then Chelsea? Looking at the league tables we have scored fewer goals in the top two divisions than any other club in the Premiership and the Championship also we have the largest goal difference in both leagues. It goals that count not possession. RM is doing his longer best and is likeable, but frankly he is out of his depth and Saturday evenings are no longer enjoyable. Just a suggestion, get Graham Potter in on a 6 month contract with a large bonus if we stay up. We have nothing to lose but wait another 3 games and the players confidence will be ruined for months!

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JoeEgg added 16:28 - Nov 11 The result against Wolves should have been the final straw or have the VAR blunders saved him again - I mean after all we had so much possession at the time and scored a great disallowed goal! When you look at Sports Republics other teams, Goztepe and Valencianne how many more games do we have to lose before we are as poor as them? Sports Republic so ambitious and so successful! What a joke! How did we fall into their hands in the first place? We are now a laughing stock.. So what will Sports Republic call success in our next three games? Defeats by no more than 1 to nil? More VAR heartbreaks making us unlucky losers again? Dare I dream of ANOTHER point gained? If as some belief Russell Martin is out of his depth, what on earth would you say about Sports Republic?!!!

4

IanRC added 16:49 - Nov 11 If true how pathetic are Sports Republic.
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Jesus_02 added 17:55 - Nov 11 Ralph out , Ralph out!! 3 managerial appointments later an Zero proven players signed except Ramsdale. Martin out, Martin Out. People will be calling out for big Sam next.
5

Colburn added 18:01 - Nov 11 Judging by how pathetic SR have been to date, this probably is true. RM is now deluded, he watched is different game to me on Saturday. I’ve said before, I don’t believe SR care about what division we are in, it’s a business and the moneyball tactics show that this is more important than success on the pitch. Hence we are stuck with this ideologue who won’t adjust to situations and takes a negative approach to playing the bottom of the league. 5 defenders on pitch every game doesn’t suit us and the wrong personnel are selected. Why did we bring in Charlie Taylor and Sugawara and not play them. Why did we bring in Cornet? What has Diaz done? Why bring in big Les? We had NO holding midfielder on Saturday because Charles is on loan at SWed. Sorry for Aribo, he’s just not good enough or doesn’t play at full tilt for the whole game, goes to sleep. Where is Sulemana when defenders are terrified of pace? Why does RM think Fraser is the answer? He’s just an impact sun, why did we loan out Edozie? At least we had some attacking down the left when he played and he scored a few last year before injury. Another victim of our get the ball to their box and pass it back again tactic. Why did we buy Wood and Edwards? All these signings made to make us stronger and RM plays the same players who failed to finish above 4th last year. The recruitment as usual hasn’t fit with the manager. SR are pathetic, after all who buys a crocked striker for 10 million or whatever and he never gets to fitness. Utterly and completely stupid, naive beyond explanation.. this is what we have to put up with until they sell us in league 1 having made their profits from parachutes and selling our best players for a profit. Ankersen and his ways are outdated and Solak is clueless about football it seems.

7

Boris1977 added 18:43 - Nov 11 Maybe spoons republic have got a wager on us getting the lowest prem points in history so they want to keep RM on. Not sure who's getting enjoyment out of this season.
1

ItchenNorth added 18:46 - Nov 11 It very much feels like the situation Saints found themselves in back in 2012/13 when after enjoying promotions back to the Premier League a decision had to be made on Nigel Adkins. Was he really the manager that could take us beyond the lower places of the league long term or was that too risky if he couldn't. Yes, results were slightly better in those opening 3 months of that season under Adkins compared to Martin, but Nicolas Cortese made the tough call, much to the dislike of some who believed Adkins deserved more time given he got us promoted. Unlike 2013 (yet), our owners haven't yet seen that they must act now, if we are to have any chance of staying up. That for me speaks to how good Cortese was and how our current owns may not be. Yes I like Martin, but business has to be ruthless at times. If they leave it much longer, I feel we creap into the realms of accepting our fate and then, maybe then they see that Martin is the guy to bring us back up again. Time to make the tough call now for me and go get Potter, if he's willing to come.

3

Capt_Koons added 18:49 - Nov 11 That's the most un-decision decision I've ever heard. To paraphrase, the board have decided to do nothing until things get worse when they might do something. In a nutshell that's why Sport Republic need to fûck off.
3

bryanK added 19:32 - Nov 11 They really don’t care what we think. They know regardless of the utter crap we have all endured a hardcore of us will always turn up. There is no respect for the opinion of supporters thank you Sports Republic for the utter misery you are creating in many Southampton households. The idiot that made his name at Brentford has a lot to answer for but as he does not care what we think but I suppose at 41 he knows it all.

4

DPeps added 19:50 - Nov 11 We didn't really know the financial state of the club. Lot of scrutiny on FFP now. We're probably still paying off Ralph and Jones. SR maybe can't afford to pay off another manager on a punt that they may fare better. The difference between now and 2012/13 is we had a much better team then!
1

DPeps added 19:51 - Nov 11 *don't know
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kingolaf added 21:18 - Nov 11 If copying the Brentford model means aspiring to home crowds of 20000, I would say Rasmus is very much on the right course.
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andywelsh added 07:36 - Nov 12 I am probably in the minority but I think we are actually showing gradual improvement and RM is attempting to fine tune his style. There is a case to say that we probably got promoted a year earlier than was ideal to bed in the philosophy. We are also clearly short of quality in some areas. Therefore although hiring Potter would be an option it would be no guarantee of anything much changing. The other alternative would be to go for Moyes who would produce fairly turgid but potentially effective football. This supposes that either would come. I dread to envisage what might happen if SR delve into the lower leagues for a replacement and pulling a rabbit out of the hat a la Pochettino seems well beyond them on past performance. Therefore regrettably I think the most prudent course of action may be to stick with Martin and hope he can find a way. I for one enjoyed last season a lot more than any for a long time and I suspect we would retain enough of the younger players to be effective the Championship and gain promotion again, if as seems likely it comes to that.

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landsdownsaint added 07:55 - Nov 12 AndyWelsh is seeing a different game than me , I see zero improvement & that includes the lucky Everton win
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andoverpedro added 08:49 - Nov 12 This is rubbish we can tell we have had 14 games so far this season and looked poor in all of them we got lucky against Everton in the league we struggled against cardiff, stoke in the cups doesnt that say it all the system doesnt work to give him more games is acceptance of relegation or head in the sand. Maybe thats the plan then they can sell whatever they can , no money will be spent so they can recover there money to keep the other clubs going goztepe, valeciennes etc and try to re build again , but we wont have the players this time we will end up like Norwich mid table mediocre championship side at least it will be exciting as its probably our level Bournemouth and Brighton and Brentford are bigger more forward thinking than Saints we are a shadow of the club we used to be in the 80's and 90's. even under poch and koeman and puel .

3

sandywelsh added 11:35 - Nov 12 TAXI FOR MARTIN
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Bowlercow added 12:19 - Nov 12 You lot really do need to be careful what you wish for
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landsdownsaint added 15:08 - Nov 12 I wish I didn’t have to watch the same boring non effective football being dished out at St Mary’s ! I’d rather lose 9-0 to leister then beat them next game … what great times they were compared to this dross
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Newdawn2014 added 17:31 - Nov 13 The 9 nil yes... happy days , peein` down with rain and cold with the Leicester fans having a great time at our expense ... such fun .
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