Saints are taking their time in appointing a successor to Ronald Koeman, however this is by choice rather than a forced decision.

Saints have decided that this is a managerial appointment that they need to get right, therefore they are not going to rush things, prompting speculation that although it would be easy to appoint someone now, Manuel Pellegrini, Frank De Boer or Claude Puel are all names in the frame, that perhaps their number one target is someone not completely obvious.

That could lead to the fact that Unai Emery now formerly of Sevilla could yet still be in the frame.

Initially Emery was seemingly high in the running, he had expressed a desire to manage in the Premier League and had y reportably spoken and turned down Everton, however his name slipped down the pecking order with the rumour that he was going to PSG.

Now almost three weeks have passed and PSG have still not sacked Laurent Blanc and Emery is still without a job, could it be that before rushing to make an appointment Saints are waiting to see how the situation at PSG develops.

It is probably not going to drag on too much longer, PSG will either act or decide to continue with Blanc, indeed some media reports suggest that they are discussing severance terms with Blanc, however clubs usually sack first and discuss afterwards, so the situation is not very clear at the moment.

So with a plethora of very qualified managers to pick from Saints are in no hurry and are taking their time in making an appointment.

Originally they had stated that they wanted the man in place for June 28th when some of the non Euros participants would return to the club for initial fitness assessments, however the Daily Echo has now reported that this date has been put back to July 4th when pre season training starts properly.

The Echo is also reporting that interviews are ongoing with some scheduled for the coming week.

It is good to see that Saints are taking their time and it is also good to see that unlike in the past, their is a very good choice of suitably qualified candidates interested in taking over.

Saints fans need to be patient and trust the club to get it right, but a word of caution, the club need to be decisive and make sure that they do get the man they want and do not take too much time to make that appointment meaning that they see potential appointments take other jobs.

Photo: Action Images

SanMarco added 09:36 - Jun 23 So we need to take our time while being decisive! Of course in many ways it doesn't matter if there is further delay and if we end up with an excellent manager then that is great. My worry (bedwetting alert) is that certain of our players who may be considering leaving may not have the counterbalance of a respected manager to persuade/instruct them otherwise. The Sun is selling Mane to Liverpool as we speak and my even bigger worry is that Long may have his head turned. I remember the power vacuum between MoPo and RoKo and we have to be careful the same doesn't happen this year. PS Klinsmann only seems to be mentioned in the betting markets. The Echo doesn't even refer at all to him but he is still hot favourite.

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JDawg added 09:37 - Jun 23 Another thing to consider. Pellegrini and at least one other candidate (Puel I think) are contracted with their previous club until 30th June, and probably in line for some bonus or another. So no point in Saints paying compensation to both the club and manager when in a week's time he'll be a free man.
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kingolaf added 09:55 - Jun 23 Bit of a long-winded way to say we are waiting for the new manager's contractural agreement to end on 30 June, so he gets a bigger wedge from them. I'm willing to bet the new manager has already been interviewed. All this just seems like a bit of spin. I reckon our new boss has been sent home with all last seasons DVDs to get through.
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no7saint added 12:56 - Jun 23 Whoever it turns out to be it's worth being open-minded, initial fan reactions to new managers can turn out to be wrong. I recall the lack of enthusiasm when we appointed Poch and Strachan who both turned out to be good choices, and the excitement around Redknapp who definitely didn't. I admit to not following the rumours closely but has Ryan Giggs name come up yet? May not have the wow factor of some of the names that have come up but might bring something to the table.

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law101 added 14:22 - Jun 23 I can't see Long going! Technically he isn't a top 4 player and while the likes of Everton may feel in with a chance we are in the best position of the clubs below to keep him. I feel it is essential for whoever we get in to keep Mane for one more year, after a summer of more upheaval. If he can find some consistency he could be worth considerably more.
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pintsizedsaint added 15:31 - Jun 23 I agree with the suspicion that this is linked to the run-down of a contract. If so, it feels like Pellegrini will be manager. Yet who knows for sure? Betting markets are going crazy. You can't rule out Saints are putting up a huge smokescreen in order to ensure this is kept watertight. As for Mane to Liverpool: not sure! The reports are full of vague waffle with no source. £25 million is not enough and i'm convinced Saints will only sell if a really silly offer is made.

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