Saints made a massive public display of faith to show that they feel they have their man on Wednesday evening at St Mary's, so on the surface it seems that they feel they have their man.

When Nathan Jones sat in the Directors box to watch Saints take on Sheffield Wednesday in the Carabao cup on Wednesday it was a significant moment that showed that he is not just one of the candidates that Saints have been eyeing to replace Ralph Hasenhuttl.

If that was the case then the interview would have been done quietly and he would have left without much fuss and gone home, but to publicly display him to not only Saints supporters but the footballing world in general was a statement.

Some would say Saints are acting in haste , after all Ralph was only sacked on Monday, but as has been stated in the press, as in chasing transfer targets with players, the club have had contingency plans in place for replacing managers.

They will have looked at him very carefully over a period of time and assessed both his results & methods, but also his character.

However it is true to say that his upcoming appointment is not popular amongst Saints supporters, they can judge only on what he has done and what they read in the press.

From this perspective they do not like what they see, rumours of his direct & aggressive manner abound, even of screaming in players faces, the fans ask whether this will work with Premier League players.

But once the choice is made and he is the new man, the truth is we have to judge him on what he does at Southampton FC and not Luton Town or Stoke City, we have to give him the benefit of the doubt and back him, we cannot continue the toxic atmosphere that has surrounded Ralph Hasenhuttl on social media.

In short we have to be open minded and not condemn him before he has even started.

Photo: Action Images

underweststand added 08:19 - Nov 10 In all honesty - even Ralph's staunchest fan - would have to admit that his time was up. We are many who have never even heard of Nathan Jones - let alone his managerial successes. However, he has a track record with young players, which is important as many of those coming through the ranks in the next season or two are presently still in their teens and still learning their trade. Be prepared for those sick jokes that might well appear after our visit to Liverpool, but personally speaking I 'll be glad if we can pick up a win from the 3 games we have before the FA Cup starts in January. The whole idea of having a good Cup run - in either competition - whilst still fighting off relegation is very challenging to say the least.

3

landsdownsaint added 09:07 - Nov 10 I live & work in Brighton & all I’m getting is “wtf are saints doing? According to them he is tactically useless especially at the back with no specific style of play . I really don’t understand what qualified him for a PL job ? How I see it is we’ve got rid of a manager that would’ve probably kept us up and would’ve developed players that would go for huge fees … Pep might’ve thought that as well

1

ancientbriton added 09:19 - Nov 10 Good to see the Saints board choosing someone with experience of the Championship because we look likely to need that next season
2

felly1 added 09:34 - Nov 10 Ralph had a good run with us, as with all managers his time was up and it was pretty clear to the vast majority of supporters that things were stagnating. New man Nathan Jones steps in and I wish him all the best and I will certainly be behind him and hopefully the majority of the fanbase will give him some time to bed in his ideas. If we go down it won't be his fault or Ralph's... Yes they will gave to accept there share of the blame but ultimately it will come down to poor recruitment and lack of investment as the main cause for me.

1

Ifonly added 09:34 - Nov 10 "...screaming in players faces, the fans ask whether this will work with Premier League players" No it won't. If RH lost a few of the players, this approach would lose them all. It will work if used occasionally by someone with a big reputation, like Fergie yelling at the kids in his squad, but that's about it. By all accounts, PL players tend to have a "show me your medals" attitude and NJ doesn't have the medals.

1

SaintPaulVW added 09:53 - Nov 10 Unless we appointed Poch some fans wouldn't be happy. We were never going to appoint Poch and Poch was never going to come back so some fans will never be happy. Jones is going to have a tough job winning over some supporters. Getting on his back from day 1 about not being the 'ideal' candidate is going to do anyone any good. A new manager bounce right before the world cup break would do wonders for everyone. Best of luck NJ COYR

2

SanMarco added 10:07 - Nov 10 I knew nothing about Jones before Monday. I am a bit worried given what I am reading but the idea that a "Jones Out" movement is already sharpening its vocal chords is ominous for our chances of staying up. We must get behind him because if he does a Liz Truss and gets sacked after 10 games we will already be doomed, so there are no other options. I hope the club haven't made a mistake but if they have then a 'toxic' atmosphere at home games is not going to help - is it??? The other important point to make is that Ralph's time was up. If we believe, or get to believe, that Jones is a poor appointment then that does not mean that Ralph should have stayed. If the Ralph loyalists use dislike of Jones to create an "I told you so" narrative then we have had it.

0

Consigliere added 10:39 - Nov 10 Not so much “Jones Out” but “Nathan Who?” San Marco! We shall see…..
2

OldhillSaint added 10:43 - Nov 10 Whilst many of us (me included) seem rather underwhelmed by Nathan Jones appointment, we all need to remember a few things............... 1. No one was that impressed when we unveiled Nigel Adkins as manger and look what he achieved 2. You cannot judge Nathan Jones on what he did (or didn't do) at Luton or Stoke, many managers find a club they just "click" with because it is the right fit for both parties but are then unsuccessful elsewhere - Double edged sword that one! Hopefully NJ is the right fit. 3. If we are to get out of the mess we are in, what Nathan said about everyone being bought in, players, board, staff and fans alike is absolutely right. As fans we have a huge part to play in the coming months, we need to back the club wholeheartedly and remember it won't change overnight. I am still confident we can stay up. COYR

6

PaleRider added 11:08 - Nov 10 Well said OldhillSaint - he is now our manager. We can judge him at the end of the season and in the meantime we have to support him.
5

Block8 added 11:25 - Nov 10 No one had heard of Potter & what a failure he's been??
1

landsdownsaint added 11:37 - Nov 10 Makes me laugh the RH out brigade , we was a few points off mid table !… I’m not happy with NJ appointment but I’ve never ever not got behind whos in charge & players alike
1

undertoomers added 11:38 - Nov 10 As the Supremes once (almost) sang, "Nathan Jones you'll be gone before long". What fantastic hindsight. My dream was for Marcello Gallardo, I pictured myself in my old 2010 Saints shirt (with the red sash) in homage to him as it's akin to his beloved River Plate . Now he's out of the picture I'm looking at the scenario of by the time the new bloke goes Everton would have sacked Frank. Then hopefully our betters (the board) will grab him with both hands. I hope to god.

-3

derry added 13:40 - Nov 10 Give the bloke a fair go. His wife's family reportedly are season ticket holders plus her great grandfather played for Saints. I wonder what his name is. According to his interview he is emotionally connected to the club like the rest of us. His interview video was good. He has certainly done well at Luton. It may be well for us to remember that probably our greatest manager was a Norfolk country boy, Ted Bates, who took us from Div3 (S) to the old first division and provided us with some of the most exciting football in our complete history. I wonder who the great grandfather is. I'm for giving him our complete support. Anything else will be stupidity and we certainly don't need that. As for "Show us your medals" my response would be look at the league table because if you've got any medals it sure isn't working for you here.

4

A1079 added 15:59 - Nov 10 As they say, you can only speak as you find and though he would not have been my choice I am willing to give him a chance and for the sake of my team and home city I hope he and the team do well or the very best that they can.
2

kingolaf added 22:07 - Nov 10 He’ll get more out of the squad than Nick’s darling Ralph. Of that I have no doubt. If his name was Natho Juano and had the same experience, some idiots on here would be creaming their pants.
1

Stevebish added 16:45 - Nov 11 If he plays some direct football as some have said then maybe it will help us as atm we seem to find it impossible to pass forward quickly and by the time we get to the box the other team has their men behind the ball and organised. Maybe the reason we don't score is because of this, so here's hoping that maybe he can bring a new lease of life to our players and onwards and upwards

0

Blogs 31 bloggers

Leyton Orient Polls