Ronald Koeman spoke before the game to ask for Southampton fans to respect him, however he showed little dignity in defeat that even Martin Keown on MOTD commented on.

In the run up to the game Ronald Koeman clearly knew that he would not get a warm welcome from Saints supporters.

‘I cannot change opinions and feelings of the Southampton fans - I hope they will respect me,’ Koeman said

‘We had a great time, and after my career I will look back and say I had a great time. Of course I understand the difference of opinions and reactions. I’m not afraid of that.

‘But it’s time to think about Everton. I made the choice to move and I’m happy what I’m doing."

Koeman was right, he did take Saints forward as a club, but that wasn't the issue and the statement suggested that the Dutchman knew that himself, as he stated it was he who made the choice to move and not Southampton FC who wanted him to stay and sign a new contract, something that Koeman himself declined to do saying that he was happy to work at St Mary's as he was at Feyenoord on a one year rolling contract, something that would enable him to leave fairly easily should his dream big jobs of the Dutch nationa team or Barcelona come up.

That all changes when Everton kept coming back with more offers and in fairness it took a big amount to make Koeman abandon his principles and take a job for the money and not the actual job itself.

In asking for Saints fans to show him respect, Koeman clearly felt uncomfortable about what had happened, almost apologetic and ever since that move I suspect that he has been trying to convince himself that he was doing the right thing and moving to a big club in a strong position rather than just taking the cash.

Saints fans showed him respect, in terms of vitriolic welcomes Koeman's came way down the scale of the ones that former managers like Harry Redknapp, Pochettino or Glenn Hoddle have received at St Mary's, yes there were a few abusive chants from the Northam End during the second half, but they were sporadic and in general Koeman received a mixed welcome rather than vitriolic.

But after the game Koeman could not bring himself to acknowledge Saints and in particular Josh Sims.

After being asked on television about Sims debut Koeman became very evasive saying that "Josh Sims is not my problem(sic) I am manager of Everton now he is Southampton's problem"

This was perhaps hitting at the true reason why although Saints were happy with what Koeman was doing in general, they were not happy with the way he was ignoring the up and coming players.

Indeed Koeman although loathe to mention Sims or anyone else by name was quick to defend his record of playing Saints up and coming talent.

“Maybe the question is to try something I will tell about Southampton what’s not OK.

“I think seven or eight under-21 players make his debut in the first team when I was manager. Think about that.”

This is a little distortion of the truth, yes in his first season several academy players did make appearances for the first team under Koeman, mainly in periods of injury in the squad some appearances were substantial, most were fleeting from the bench and of those youngsters who did make their debut's only Matt Targett got any real game time.

Last season in the Premier League only Matt Targett played many games (i'm discounting JWP who had played many games in the two seasons before Koeman arrived) and that was only because of injury to Ryan Bertrand.

In fact in 2015/16 apart from Targett the only other player to make a Premier League appearance was Harrison Reed who came on as a sub at Norwich for the final 10 minutes.

Now the picture is clearer as to why perhaps Koeman was not as big a fit to the Saints job as those without insider knowledge would think.

But it was Koeman's attitude to Saints that drew the wrath of Martin Keown on Match Of The Day, the former Arsenal defender stating that Koeman showed a complete lack of dignity and respect for Saints.

When questioned further Keown said that whilst Koeman might have felt it a loaded question there was no reason to be so uncharitable, a simple reply that it was nice to see Josh Sims make his debut and do well would have put the question to bed.

Sadly I think Koeman is unhappy at Everton, I think he knew from the start that he had betrayed his own principles and that up till last May he was a very honourable man who did have high morals and ethics, but they say that every man has his price and Ronald Koeman now knows that more than anyone and i think he is struggling to live with it.

Photo: Action Images

SonicBoom added 11:07 - Nov 28 I admire your spin on it Nick. You defended him to the hilt whilst he was here, saying he was a man of his word etc etc. even though his actions and words weren't supporting that view. Now he's gone you are convinced that he isn't really happy and regrets the move. Maybe you have to face up to the fact that he isn't who you thought. He seemed annoyed yesterday that he was being asked questions about Saints and answered accordingly. Much like our other defectors it might not be going brilliantly but they are still above us in the league. I don't believe Koeman is going to lose much sleep.

0

SaintNick added 11:40 - Nov 28 I did think Koeman was an honourable man, I was proved wrong, but i do think that honourable men do not become bad overnight, we have all made bad decisions that are out of character over our lives and regretted them I think this is one for Koeman. Yes I do think he regrets the manner in which the move happened and has spent time trying to convince himself that he moved for the right reasons and not just the cash. Yes he was annoyed yesterday when asked about Saints, but if he was comfortable in his new job he would have been a lot more charitable as Martin Keown remarked on last night, why did he not just say "Last season Josh Sims was not ready for the first team, now he is showing he is" Yes they are still above us in the league but only just, we are moving forward they are not at present

5

SanMarco added 11:47 - Nov 28 I think Koeman is regretting the move - not through love of Saints but because he is stuck in a job that may hinder his further progression. He didn't need to stop over at Everton on his way to Barca and now he is stuck with very high expectations and a pretty average team that he needs to turn around very quickly. As for the rest - he lost, full stop. He looked very uncomfortable during the interviews I saw. Of course he didn't want to talk about the opposition, he was seething at how bad his own team had been. I remember dear old Fergie: as long as we had lost he was graciousness personified and would praise us to the skies if we'd played well - if we won however.....

6

SanMarco added 11:47 - Nov 28 I think Koeman is regretting the move - not through love of Saints but because he is stuck in a job that may hinder his further progression. He didn't need to stop over at Everton on his way to Barca and now he is stuck with very high expectations and a pretty average team that he needs to turn around very quickly. As for the rest - he lost, full stop. He looked very uncomfortable during the interviews I saw. Of course he didn't want to talk about the opposition, he was seething at how bad his own team had been. I remember dear old Fergie: as long as we had lost he was graciousness personified and would praise us to the skies if we'd played well - if we won however.....

0

paulharrison added 12:01 - Nov 28 Whilst I agree with you in part, I think it was a stupid question and I'm not entirely surprised he reacted in that manner.
1

BaselSaint added 12:10 - Nov 28 I hope he enjoys his money.
0

BUCK added 12:57 - Nov 28 There is no doubt in my mind he regrets going to Everton. Hes lost all respect he had in this country of being honourable. He's greedy,disloyal,a liar, and a very bitter man. He had it all at southampton,but les reed saw right through him.our youth had been forgotten. Look at Claude puel, this man is loyal to teams he's managed. He's not afraid at all to get youth involved, Sam McQueen has been immense this season.and now Josh Sims. The future in my opinion is far brighter than it was last season. So what if koeman is on 120k a week.I didn't see much of this 100 million war chest being spent in the summer. Everton are no different than that last season,and now they're being exposed and koeman doesnt like it. His reputation is shattered.1 step forward and 2 back comes to mind for him,

7

saintstuinoz added 13:15 - Nov 28 I don't blame him for leaving. If you aren't a saints fan, you're going to leave for £6m a year to join a historically 'bigger' club. That said, I think he's trying to get the sack by Everton, take a huge (c£10m) pay out and sit back until the Dutch national side come calling. It's an excellent career plan, as the Dutch have no other options really and his stock will still be high enough,off the back of the work he did here, even if Everton sack him.

0

halftimeorange added 14:18 - Nov 28 Koeman was right for Saints at the time he came. Pochettino was the one who upset the apple cart and caused unrest amongst the players. Saints needed a name to allay fears that they were not ambitious and Ron was that name and the club consolidated its position under him. During his tenure as manager he did observe that, at that time, there were not many youngsters showing that they might step up to the first team. He surely would have made that observation based on advice from the appropriate coaching staff. I don't think the Josh Sims question on MOTD was stupid, it was provocative and designed to get a reaction from a man whose English isn't perfect. The same as the comment about Sims being lined up by Liverpool was a dig at Saints selling policy. It's what TV questioners do. We'll never know for sure exactly why Ron moved on. Either way, he's history but he didn't use Saints as a stepping stone to bigger things or come out with waffle that he'd got his dream job. In fact, Ron said very little. I think we should keep our counsel and support what Claude Puel has set about achieving. What Koeman thinks about Josh Sims is irrelevant.

5

GeordieSaint added 14:23 - Nov 28 I was gutted when Nigel was binned. I was gutted when Poch left. I was really devastated when Koeman left, even though I preferred the style of football under Pochetino. All these lads contributed to the development of the club and that should be recognised but football moves on. However, it gives me great pleasure to see how utterly terrible Everton really are. Loads of their squad look over the hill or just plain rubbish. Ronald is really going to have to earn those megabucks. Great to see some more players really showing promise and hopefully some clamouring for new faces will realise that space needs to be left to allow the kids to develop. I still wouldn't mind a new striker for Christmas though, we could be a lot further up the league with a real speedy predator to compliment Austin.

8

saintmark1976 added 15:02 - Nov 28 Koeman's reaction was probably the same as 99 percent of us would have given when asked what was clearly a provocative question by a reporter looking for a story. Ronald has not become a bad manager over night and I am confident that given time he will rebuild an Everton team some of who's players are clearly past their sale by date. May I suggest that we cut the man some slack and move on. Let's just remember him for rebuilding two of our sides in consecutive close seasons and last term taking us to our highest Premiership position ever.

2

BoondockSaint added 15:09 - Nov 28 Always thought it was a "sideways move" but he new his stock would go down if Saints sold their best players and did not bring in proper replacements. Interview was total "gotcha" reporting. As far as "respecting the fans", we could use a bit of that from the board!
3

froggysaint added 19:54 - Nov 28 Fantastic debut for Sims; all congratulations to him. Kudos to Claude Puel too. His approach is spot on for our club. The question I'd have asked RK after the game is whether Age concern or a fertilizer company would make a better sponsor for the Toffees' defense.
0

abingdonsaint added 20:52 - Nov 28 All of this really just backs up what I said about Koeman in a previous post. He tried to use Everton's interest as a bargaining tool, and Saints didn't fall for it because he wasn't quite as indispensable as he thought. Josh Sims has been on the radar for a while, and is an England youth international. If he really wasn't aware of him, then he was clearly failing in one of the main parts of his job description as Southampton manager. No wonder we let him go!

1

Blogs 31 bloggers

Rochdale Polls