Matt Watts returns with his take on Southampton manager Nathan Jones and the latest happenings at St Mary's.

What an amazing night at St Mary’s to see Saints beat Manchester City with a resounding 2-0 win.

After a torrid time so far this season, a win away at Crystal Palace - albeit a fortunate one - on Saturday in the FA Cup followed by this quarter-final victory was very welcome relief.

Nathan Jones’s side really were the dominant force against a strong City outfit looking to progress to the semi-final of a competition they have won eight times before.

There was a distinct difference in the set-up and look of the team, with a buzz, confidence and determination that has been missing in recent weeks and for much of the season.

Credit to the team, the manager, his staff and everyone else involved in delivering the result. It does come after four defeats in the Premier League since former Luton Town boss Jones took charge and questions have been raised about what the future holds.

While there was a laboured win over Lincoln City in round four of the Carabao Cup in between those losses, that did little to shake of the unease about the look of the team over that period - understandably so in my opinion given some of the abject performances involved.

Fans can and should expect more from what should be a stable Premier League club which has new ownership and had an injection of funds during the summer transfer window.

People are also entitled to make their views known. Jones has fronted up to criticism from fans in recent weeks and so he has to as the figurehead. He surely understands the pressure of the managerial game in professional football.

But is hasn’t all been about him and not every fan or person with an interest in Southampton Football Club has personally targeted the manager. However, his tone and approach in interviews - his key tool in conversing with the fan base - has suggested he feels the Saints world is against him and him only.

For me personally, despite not being overawed by the appointment, I was willing upon the announcement to support the move by the club I follow and hope for a turnaround in fortunes. Many felt the same no doubt and still do.

However, there was also no getting away from the fact when he was given the job that the jury would be out given his lack of top level managerial experience and ill-fated spell at Stoke City where he achieved a win percentage of 15.8% in 38 games in the Championship before heading back to Luton.

This was also combined with the fact he had joined a club in a very challenging situation. So it therefore seems acceptable to have some concern about the future of the club’s Premier League status after four straight defeats and some abysmal displays in that time.

His interviews to this point have been poorly conducted - criticising fans for their discontent, championing his record in League One and the Championship with Luton, leading with a “they not we” mentality and broadcasting to the nation how he has effectively inherited a poor team which limits his responsibility.

It has done him no favours and he should think about displaying a bit more class and courtesy. Not every Saints fan will have been at games hurling personal abuse at him. What most care about and want to see if their team work hard, play well and win football matches. Yes there will be frustration but that’s part of supporting a football club for both the fans and the staff.

So how disappointing was it after such a momentous occasion to hear Jones talk after the game about his upset at being criticised by a non-league manager, his upset at being deemed inept and that he isn’t a magician.

If ever there was a time to give it a rest and move on it was then. I for one am not interested in this bleating. I would have been far more interested in some positivity, some discussion about his decisions and his delight in securing an excellent victory.

“I don't know if I changed perceptions or not. Within 10 minutes of the Brighton game, I was inept,” he said when addressing questions about how supporters would feel after the game. In terms of the Brighton performance, it most definitely was inept. So was the defeat at home to Nottingham Forest - worse in fact.

In comments reported by the Daily Echo

https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/sport/23244903.southamptons-jones-responds-criticism

He went on: "The non-league manager who criticised me the other day. It baffled me, absolutely baffled me. I don't speak about Havant & Waterlooville or anyone down there. I don't have the disrespect to speak about levels I don't know about.”

I don’t blame him for wanting to hit back at someone who has disrespected him, but was there a need for it after his side had just beaten Manchester City in a quarter-final? Didn’t seem like the time or place to me and, to be fair, Jones has showed a fair amount of disrespect himself in his short time on the south coast.

In the same interview he also said: “I don’t know what people expect in four weeks, I am not David Blaine who can perform magic.”

What a wasted opportunity to simply share in a successful moment, of which he hasn’t yet had many as Saints boss. It’s time to move on and move forward. We want to hear only about how he will navigate the challenges ahead and pull Saints - his club - out of the relegation zone.

Ahead of Saturday’s trip to Everton, hopefully he can put his negative feelings about the fan base to one side and utilise his media opportunities to be positive, provide information about the team and his thought processes and provide a welcoming environment to the club’s supporters as opposed to taking swipes.

Photo: Action Images

obelisk added 09:24 - Jan 13 Jones took a lot of criticism, much of it completely overblown and personal. I'd been willing to give him a chance but just a week ago I was coming round to the view that he might be out of his depth. This week he's shown that he might just have something about him and that some of us fans need to get over ourselves if we're not able to take the heat that they themselves are willing to dish out. If I'd been slagged off by all around me I might well come out fighting too. Don't be so precious.

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sidsaint added 09:56 - Jan 13 He seems to have a few chips on his shoulders and has to accept criticism with more grace. Having said that it's a tough job he's taken on and if we can stribg a few results together he will gather confidence and we may see a different person who is not looking over his shoulder all the time.
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SWH1748 added 11:05 - Jan 13 I believe that he has handled himself with dignity. Yes he has spoken about the criticism because he is being journalists are constantly questioning him on it. He has stated that he understands some of it ( ie from the fans ) he has also stated he does not understand why non league managers are knocking him and he is quite right. He has also gone on record as saying give him time and he knows he will change things which over the last two games seem to be so. Fans, myself included need to back him, the players and the club wholeheartedly especially during the game if we want to get out of the mire we are presently in. Just my opinion but spending lots of money to go and sing anti productive negative songs is not helping.

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RedandWight added 11:53 - Jan 13 I must admit to being surprised by this article. Of all the issues with getting the team tactics right and returning to winning ways that our club has, surely how the manager chooses to respond to personal criticism doesn't need a whole article dedicated to it. On the back of a glorious win (and I'm still buzzing), why would you choose to disparage our manager for taking the opportunity to redress the criticism that so many pundits and armchair pundits feel they are qualified to give? To be honest it comes across as whingeing. One swallow doesn't a summer make, I know that, but the signs are there that Nathan Jones can make the changes that we need to return to winning ways. So lets get behind him and make it easier for him to do what he needs to do!

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Ifonly added 12:00 - Jan 13 Stupid article. NJ won the right to have his say with the performance against City. Rarely has a manager had to take the criticism that her has after a handful of games. After the game against City he had the right to give some back. He's not there to be a punch bag that ignorant fans and commentators can just say anything about with no recourse. He has to earn the right to speak that way but I hope he does. His aggressive attitude was reflected in the approach of the players and is exactly what we need to get out of this mess.

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ElSanto added 12:24 - Jan 13 Guardiola, Ferguson, Klopp…all these managers have a temper and would not allow people to just disparage them. I don’t necessarily think it’s a weakness. I think it shows their mentality and attitude. Jury is still out on Nathan Jones, but he’s putting up a fight. Good for him.
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Block8 added 13:27 - Jan 13 It was pretty obvious after the game that he had won over the players and if this level of performance is maintained then he will win over the fans. That said, previous to this game, we have been dreadful and there has, and rightly so, been concern from all of us fans about our PL survival. I agree that he has a right to defend himself but also feel that a bit of humility would not do him any harm. There is a very fine line between confidence and arrogance as we are all aware. Personally I was reasonably happy with his appointment but would be a liar if I said I was still happy prior to Wednesday. Nathan lets get some league wins on the table and then is the time for you to contemplate your abilities.

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SaintPaulVW added 13:33 - Jan 13 Appears to desperately need media training. Not so that he becomes bland and identikit. At the moment he seems too quick to react or to settle scores. This is a weakness that other managers or the media will exploit to get an advantage or a story. The players could lose respect at a vital time, if he is provoked to go full 'Keegan' in the run up to this season.
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pwithers123 added 13:45 - Jan 13 Agree with SaintPaulVW and many of the comments above : None of us were happy with the poor Premier League performances - and lack of ' manager bounce' - despite 6 weeks with the squad. He deserves time - yet he also must expect that what happens on the pitch will attract comment - and rightly so. That's part of the business. All this seemed to logically reflect his lack of Premier League experience. His media performances have also not been great and he needs to rethink what he is doing and how he is coming over. What a super result - that's his best response - and focussing on that wonderful performance would be his best way to talk to the media

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underweststand added 14:31 - Jan 13 I agree with those above in defence of NJ who was getting stick before he took his first game. It would be harder to criticise had it not been for the lack of Prem. type managers who were sitting around at the Job Centre, waiting for an interview. YES - Criticism comes with the job, but looking back we see that even Nigel Adkins, who came in for a lot of hard kicks - especially as he lost a few games after started back in 2010, and let's not forget that Lawrie Mc Menemy wasn't the most popular person in his start as manager. It takes time to change, and Nathan has a tough job with the squad he inherited and he has given everyone game time in an attempt to find the best starters and right formation. Those fans who don't like set-ups like 3-5-2 or 5-3-2 or whatever should recall that for all his efforts Ralph's formation wasn't a match winner either, and the goals dried up far too easily with Che Adams playing as a one-man striker force. I think Nathan had some good grounds for replying to the comments of a " local league" manager who may have his own opinion, but is hardly qualified to make judgements about Prem. managers (or even someone who has had success in the Championship). Honesty, I think the journalist involved should have found a more experienced voice to make an honest assessment. There is no magic wand on the desk in the manager's office especially in the Premier League, as many "big name" managers have found to their cost.

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Fordy added 15:20 - Jan 13 I was willing to get behind NJ after Wednesday but then I saw his interview after the game. He claimed we have played well in every game, including against Forest, but it's hard to break down a side that sits back. I haven't seen a single Saints fan that thinks we were anything other than abysmal against Forest. Even their manager said he thought we would never score and we could have played another 4 or 5 hours and still not had a shot on target. As a Saints fan I'd much rather have a manager who is honest, rather than one who is constantly saying how everything he does is amazing. I don't like the guy. I think he's an arrogant little prick. But I guess I'd rather have Saints successful managed by someone as loathsome as NJ than unsuccessful and managed by someone as loathsome as NJ. So I wish him all the best.

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halftimeorange added 16:10 - Jan 13 The Havant & Waterlooville manager is openly a lifelong Saints fan and that is what he was speaking as. I agreed with everything he said and, to my mind, NJ needs to prove himself both on and off the pitch. One swallow doesn't make a summer but, he does deserve more games.
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bartley41 added 16:27 - Jan 13 I am NOT a Fan or Supporter of Man U. but I have often thought that the hardest part of being a Manager at that Club is the constant criticism by ex Man U players who have never been Managers at any level in the game but are being paid to be pundits! Give the man a chance!
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mountsaint added 19:20 - Jan 13 I personally am rapt that he can come out and give it back because lets face it he had taken over a sh**t team.
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