Tonda Eckert

[HKsaint]

Did he reflect on his goalkeeper selection?

[tdmickey3]

8 hours ago, HKsaint said:

Did he reflect on his goalkeeper selection?

It want his decision

[Hodgey]

2 days to prep a team - was always going to play 3 cbs (as do the 21s). 
Despite a poor performance in a poor game he comes out with credit. 
Stephens was the right choice, obvious flaws but he is a communicator and fighter, also right to give him the captaincy (and Edwards deserved to be dropped)

Robinson was also the right choice, he’s raw but him and Scienza are both direct and give defenders something to think about.

Not all positive though, the subs were awful and put us on the back foot and tactically he had no answer to the momentum shift.

Baz ? He’s not good enough to be a top 6 gk in this league, but then again neither is McCarthy. There must be potential in there, City are no mugs, so giving him time when realistically we aren’t going up or down kind of makes sense in a sink or swim scenario.

I do wonder though if SR put pressure on him to play expensive younger players such as Baz and Downs to try and protect their investment.

If he wins Sat he becomes joint most wins behind Martin under SR leadership - so there’s that !

[Maggie May]

Can’t wait for him to instil his philosophy so we see a bit of that Tonda Jazz on the pitch. 

[Turkish]

Is he going to take us up

and win the FA cup?

 

the new Reuben Selles 

[Sidney Fudpucker the 3rd]

Too much of a gamble. 

I say we should get Carrick in. I'm much rather have him that Eckert or O'Neil. 

[Suhari]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Tonda Eckert first addressed the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SaintsFC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SaintsFC</a> squad in the Staplewood auditorium on Monday, he initially said nothing, instead choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other. After the silence, he then said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes.” <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthleticFC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthleticFC</a> <a href="https://t.co/vO8yn2Mtzv">pic.twitter.com/vO8yn2Mtzv</a></p>&mdash; Just Saints (@JustSaints_) <a href="https://twitter.com/JustSaints_/status/1986847166510379349?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[egg]

2 minutes ago, Suhari said:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Tonda Eckert first addressed the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SaintsFC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SaintsFC</a> squad in the Staplewood auditorium on Monday, he initially said nothing, instead choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other. After the silence, he then said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes.” <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthleticFC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthleticFC</a> <a href="https://t.co/vO8yn2Mtzv">pic.twitter.com/vO8yn2Mtzv</a></p>&mdash; Just Saints (@JustSaints_) <a href="https://twitter.com/JustSaints_/status/1986847166510379349?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

This.

[sfc4prem]

2 minutes ago, Suhari said:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Tonda Eckert first addressed the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SaintsFC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SaintsFC</a> squad in the Staplewood auditorium on Monday, he initially said nothing, instead choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other. After the silence, he then said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes.” <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthleticFC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthleticFC</a> <a href="https://t.co/vO8yn2Mtzv">pic.twitter.com/vO8yn2Mtzv</a></p>&mdash; Just Saints (@JustSaints_) <a href="https://twitter.com/JustSaints_/status/1986847166510379349?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

He got fucking laughed out the auditorium, I bet.

[Cuddles]

5 minutes ago, Suhari said:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Tonda Eckert first addressed the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SaintsFC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SaintsFC</a> squad in the Staplewood auditorium on Monday, he initially said nothing, instead choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other. After the silence, he then said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes.” <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthleticFC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthleticFC</a> <a href="https://t.co/vO8yn2Mtzv">pic.twitter.com/vO8yn2Mtzv</a></p>&mdash; Just Saints (@JustSaints_) <a href="https://twitter.com/JustSaints_/status/1986847166510379349?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

I thought Russell was the hungry eyes one? Or was that hungry beards?

[Suhari]

8 minutes ago, egg said:

This.

Yep.

Tried to link a Twitter post, couldn't, gave the fuck up, and failed to delete it too.

Like a cheap b'n'b. SR out.

[Suhari]

I also wanted to follow up with this (unless I fuck it up too)....

 

 

 

 

[AlexLaw76]

🚨 In his first meeting with the senior squad on Monday, Tonda Eckert initially said nothing, choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other –– after the silence, he said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes

[23rdSaint]

The full article, if anyone's interested:

 

The Athletic: What is going wrong at Southampton?

by Dan Sheldon with Jacob Tanswell

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6786896/2025/11/07/southampton-will-still-sport-republic-analysis/

Johannes Spors, Southampton’s technical director, was on his feet addressing the club’s players in the auditorium at their Staplewood training ground on Monday, the day after a decision was made to sack Will Still just five months into his tenure.

After saying a few words, Spors handed the floor to Tonda Eckert, Southampton’s under-21s head coach, who had just been appointed the interim first team boss.

Eckert, standing up, initially said nothing, instead choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other. After the silence, he then said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes.”

It certainly caught the attention of the squad — according to sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships — and his messaging throughout his first couple of days in interim charge ultimately worked as he oversaw a victory away to Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday night. It was Southampton’s first league win since September 30.

Three points would have come as a welcome reprieve for Sport Republic — the club’s ownership group headed up by lead investor Dragan Solak — who had been subject to much of the fans’ ire in recent weeks.

Since acquiring the club in January 2022, Sport Republic, not for a lack of investment, has presided over a dismal record.

There have been two Premier League relegations either side of their Championship play-off triumph in 2023-24, and a slew of disastrous managerial appointments, with Nathan Jones, Ruben Selles and Ivan Juric only registering one league win each, a record Still narrowly bettered with two victories.

Only Russell Martin, who led them to the play-off win in 2024, could be deemed a success, although his tenure ended on a sour note after he was sacked during a woeful Premier League campaign the following season.

Still’s axing has left them searching for yet another manager and poses further questions about how Southampton is being run from the top down.

Still, then aged 32, joined Southampton on a three-year deal in May, an appointment and recruitment process led by Spors, and arrived with a good reputation from his work in France’s Ligue 1, where he had previously been the head coach of Reims and Lens.

In line with his upward trajectory, Southampton was the biggest job of his young career and he arrived at a time when the club was at its lowest moment after a shambolic Premier League season in 2024-25 that saw them finish bottom of the table.

Southampton, via Solak’s money and Spors’ recruitment strategy, invested heavily in the summer, spending in the region of £50million on Finn Azaz, Caspar Jander, Tom Fellows, Leo Scienza, Damion Downs and Joshua Quarshie.

This spending was offset by more than £100m being generated in sales after Tyler Dibling, Mateus Fernandes, Kamaldeen Sulemana, Jan Bednarek, Sam Amo-Ameyaw and Paul Onuachu were sold.

There is a view from sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, that the summer’s recruitment did not suit the profile of player Still had been accustomed to coaching in France.

Sources close to Still, also speaking on the condition of anonymity for the same reasons, echoed that sentiment and suggested, in hindsight, that he could have been more vocal on the incomings and outgoings to ensure he had a suitable squad at his disposal.

There is also a sense that he could have pushed harder on the make-up of his coaching staff, with Adam Lallana and Carl Martin already at Southampton when he arrived. The only coach Still brought to St Mary’s was Ruben Martinez, the goalkeeper coach.

Clement Lemaitre, who also joined at the same time as Still, worked as a video analyst. Both Martinez and Lemaitre were dismissed, as was Martin, who had spent seven years at the club.

Even though Still was generally well-liked by the players and fundamentally viewed as a good person, a common criticism has emerged that centres on his personality not being the right one to drive through the change required to lift the mood — which was at rock bottom — and provide a sense of freshness.

An example of how he didn’t particularly help himself is when it came to training. He would religiously stick to only doing tactical work with the starting XI throughout the week, meaning there was a lack of focus on what the substitutes should be doing when they are brought on.

As Still retreated to his office at St Mary’s on Saturday evening, following a terrible defeat at home to Preston North End, he knew the writing was on the wall.

But to lay the blame solely at Still’s door for what has transpired at Southampton this season would be to overlook the malaise and flux that stems from the top down and into the dressing room.

You don’t have to look too far back to a time when Southampton’s dressing room was dominated by leaders who set high standards, be it Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Steven Davis, or even Theo Walcott on his return to the club in 2021. They wanted to sign Danny Ings, their former striker in the summer, but a deal failed to materialise.

An indication of the dearth of leaders within the first team is shown by Sport Republic signing Oriol Romeu as a free agent three years after they sold him, with Spors even referencing the fact that the midfielder will “play a vital role in terms of the culture (we) want to instil throughout the squad” in the statement.

“Every time there is a scrap on the pitch, there is nobody there kicking off…they (the players) don’t have an edge,” said a source close to one of the first-team players. “And when they concede, everyone just throws their hands in the air. There is no hunger to defend.”

In recent months, clearly recognising something wasn’t quite adding up despite the vast sums of money being spent, Solak moved Henrik Kraft, one of Sport Republic’s co-founders and Southampton’s chairman, to one side. Rasmus Ankersen, also a co-founder of the ownership group, now plays a much less hands-on role.

At the same time, Solak has become increasingly hands-on, and was at Loftus Road on Wednesday evening, where he sat alongside Phil Parsons, Southampton’s chief executive, Spors and Ankersen.

One commonly held opinion from people with knowledge of the dynamics behind the scenes at board level is that there is a culture of blame as opposed to one of responsibility. So, when things go badly, as they have been doing in recent years, nobody steps forward and owns it. Instead, a blame game takes place.

A wider example of this can be seen within the academy, which was once feted as arguably the best in the country and arguably one of the better proving grounds in Europe. But that reputation has dwindled over the years.

Highly-talented players now move on, whether that is Jimmy-Jay Morgan joining Chelsea, Harley Emsden-James opting to leave for Manchester United, Harrison Miles signing for Manchester City, or Alejandro Gomes Rodriguez swapping the south coast for Lyon.

Of course, money can be a factor in decisions to leave, with Southampton unable or unwilling to match what their academy rivals can offer, but the pathway to the first team has also narrowed.

During a wider strategy day last season, the club set a target to become the country’s best academy. 2027 was discussed as one option, but they opted for 2030 as the goal, as that was considered more realistic.

Academy sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity to protect relationships, detail confusion within the setup about how quickly they are asked to change direction in terms of playing styles. This, however, is perhaps more indicative of the changing of philosophies at senior first-team level.

Academy coaches, for example, were told they need to implement a high-possession style from under-9 level — coinciding with Jason Wilcox and Martin’s arrival at the club — and were set key performance indicators (KPIs), some of which were measured in percentages. This notably included heavy possession and sustained control of the ball in the attacking half. What they are supposed to do now is much less clear, after a change to those KPIs.

Southampton’s search for Still’s replacement is already well underway, and, despite their struggles this season, they remain an attractive proposition. Solak has shown a willingness to continue investing in the playing squad and they are performing way below their potential.

Even after the club’s disappointing start, which has them in 15th place, Southampton are only eight points behind the play-off spots — and the Championship campaign is not even a third of the way through yet.

But if the replacement for Still proves to be another miss, then that will undoubtedly lead more criticism to Sport Republic’s door.

For a fan base that has had nothing to cling to in the past couple of years, and which has had the joy sucked out of the football they have been paying to watch, the club is under pressure to get the appointment right — and for the players to show a bit more effort than they have over the past year.

[Mboto Gorge]

3 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said:

🚨 In his first meeting with the senior squad on Monday, Tonda Eckert initially said nothing, choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other –– after the silence, he said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes

This alone ought to be enough to rule him out of the running of getting the job long term 🤣

Edited 23 hours ago by Mboto Gorge

[AlexLaw76]

1 minute ago, Mboto Gorge said:

This along ought to be enough to rule him out of the running of getting the job long term 🤣

 

[Toussaint]

On 06/11/2025 at 09:35, Hodgey said:

2 days to prep a team - was always going to play 3 cbs (as do the 21s). 
Despite a poor performance in a poor game he comes out with credit. 
Stephens was the right choice, obvious flaws but he is a communicator and fighter, also right to give him the captaincy (and Edwards deserved to be dropped)

Robinson was also the right choice, he’s raw but him and Scienza are both direct and give defenders something to think about.

Not all positive though, the subs were awful and put us on the back foot and tactically he had no answer to the momentum shift.

Baz ? He’s not good enough to be a top 6 gk in this league, but then again neither is McCarthy. There must be potential in there, City are no mugs, so giving him time when realistically we aren’t going up or down kind of makes sense in a sink or swim scenario.

I do wonder though if SR put pressure on him to play expensive younger players such as Baz and Downs to try and protect their investment.

If he wins Sat he becomes joint most wins behind Martin under SR leadership - so there’s that !

In his defence, Robinson was done in and Scienza injured, we were 2 - 0 up at that point and should have closed the game out comfortably until Baz’s howler. At that point we were left with no out. Unfortunate I’d say, unless you believe he bought it on himself by playing Baz.

[benjii]

16 minutes ago, 23rdSaint said:

The full article, if anyone's interested:

 

The Athletic: What is going wrong at Southampton?

by Dan Sheldon with Jacob Tanswell

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6786896/2025/11/07/southampton-will-still-sport-republic-analysis/

Johannes Spors, Southampton’s technical director, was on his feet addressing the club’s players in the auditorium at their Staplewood training ground on Monday, the day after a decision was made to sack Will Still just five months into his tenure.

After saying a few words, Spors handed the floor to Tonda Eckert, Southampton’s under-21s head coach, who had just been appointed the interim first team boss.

Eckert, standing up, initially said nothing, instead choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other. After the silence, he then said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes.”

It certainly caught the attention of the squad — according to sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships — and his messaging throughout his first couple of days in interim charge ultimately worked as he oversaw a victory away to Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday night. It was Southampton’s first league win since September 30.

Three points would have come as a welcome reprieve for Sport Republic — the club’s ownership group headed up by lead investor Dragan Solak — who had been subject to much of the fans’ ire in recent weeks.

Since acquiring the club in January 2022, Sport Republic, not for a lack of investment, has presided over a dismal record.

There have been two Premier League relegations either side of their Championship play-off triumph in 2023-24, and a slew of disastrous managerial appointments, with Nathan Jones, Ruben Selles and Ivan Juric only registering one league win each, a record Still narrowly bettered with two victories.

Only Russell Martin, who led them to the play-off win in 2024, could be deemed a success, although his tenure ended on a sour note after he was sacked during a woeful Premier League campaign the following season.

Still’s axing has left them searching for yet another manager and poses further questions about how Southampton is being run from the top down.

Still, then aged 32, joined Southampton on a three-year deal in May, an appointment and recruitment process led by Spors, and arrived with a good reputation from his work in France’s Ligue 1, where he had previously been the head coach of Reims and Lens.

In line with his upward trajectory, Southampton was the biggest job of his young career and he arrived at a time when the club was at its lowest moment after a shambolic Premier League season in 2024-25 that saw them finish bottom of the table.

Southampton, via Solak’s money and Spors’ recruitment strategy, invested heavily in the summer, spending in the region of £50million on Finn Azaz, Caspar Jander, Tom Fellows, Leo Scienza, Damion Downs and Joshua Quarshie.

This spending was offset by more than £100m being generated in sales after Tyler Dibling, Mateus Fernandes, Kamaldeen Sulemana, Jan Bednarek, Sam Amo-Ameyaw and Paul Onuachu were sold.

There is a view from sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, that the summer’s recruitment did not suit the profile of player Still had been accustomed to coaching in France.

Sources close to Still, also speaking on the condition of anonymity for the same reasons, echoed that sentiment and suggested, in hindsight, that he could have been more vocal on the incomings and outgoings to ensure he had a suitable squad at his disposal.

There is also a sense that he could have pushed harder on the make-up of his coaching staff, with Adam Lallana and Carl Martin already at Southampton when he arrived. The only coach Still brought to St Mary’s was Ruben Martinez, the goalkeeper coach.

Clement Lemaitre, who also joined at the same time as Still, worked as a video analyst. Both Martinez and Lemaitre were dismissed, as was Martin, who had spent seven years at the club.

Even though Still was generally well-liked by the players and fundamentally viewed as a good person, a common criticism has emerged that centres on his personality not being the right one to drive through the change required to lift the mood — which was at rock bottom — and provide a sense of freshness.

An example of how he didn’t particularly help himself is when it came to training. He would religiously stick to only doing tactical work with the starting XI throughout the week, meaning there was a lack of focus on what the substitutes should be doing when they are brought on.

As Still retreated to his office at St Mary’s on Saturday evening, following a terrible defeat at home to Preston North End, he knew the writing was on the wall.

But to lay the blame solely at Still’s door for what has transpired at Southampton this season would be to overlook the malaise and flux that stems from the top down and into the dressing room.

You don’t have to look too far back to a time when Southampton’s dressing room was dominated by leaders who set high standards, be it Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Steven Davis, or even Theo Walcott on his return to the club in 2021. They wanted to sign Danny Ings, their former striker in the summer, but a deal failed to materialise.

An indication of the dearth of leaders within the first team is shown by Sport Republic signing Oriol Romeu as a free agent three years after they sold him, with Spors even referencing the fact that the midfielder will “play a vital role in terms of the culture (we) want to instil throughout the squad” in the statement.

“Every time there is a scrap on the pitch, there is nobody there kicking off…they (the players) don’t have an edge,” said a source close to one of the first-team players. “And when they concede, everyone just throws their hands in the air. There is no hunger to defend.”

In recent months, clearly recognising something wasn’t quite adding up despite the vast sums of money being spent, Solak moved Henrik Kraft, one of Sport Republic’s co-founders and Southampton’s chairman, to one side. Rasmus Ankersen, also a co-founder of the ownership group, now plays a much less hands-on role.

At the same time, Solak has become increasingly hands-on, and was at Loftus Road on Wednesday evening, where he sat alongside Phil Parsons, Southampton’s chief executive, Spors and Ankersen.

One commonly held opinion from people with knowledge of the dynamics behind the scenes at board level is that there is a culture of blame as opposed to one of responsibility. So, when things go badly, as they have been doing in recent years, nobody steps forward and owns it. Instead, a blame game takes place.

A wider example of this can be seen within the academy, which was once feted as arguably the best in the country and arguably one of the better proving grounds in Europe. But that reputation has dwindled over the years.

Highly-talented players now move on, whether that is Jimmy-Jay Morgan joining Chelsea, Harley Emsden-James opting to leave for Manchester United, Harrison Miles signing for Manchester City, or Alejandro Gomes Rodriguez swapping the south coast for Lyon.

Of course, money can be a factor in decisions to leave, with Southampton unable or unwilling to match what their academy rivals can offer, but the pathway to the first team has also narrowed.

During a wider strategy day last season, the club set a target to become the country’s best academy. 2027 was discussed as one option, but they opted for 2030 as the goal, as that was considered more realistic.

Academy sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity to protect relationships, detail confusion within the setup about how quickly they are asked to change direction in terms of playing styles. This, however, is perhaps more indicative of the changing of philosophies at senior first-team level.

Academy coaches, for example, were told they need to implement a high-possession style from under-9 level — coinciding with Jason Wilcox and Martin’s arrival at the club — and were set key performance indicators (KPIs), some of which were measured in percentages. This notably included heavy possession and sustained control of the ball in the attacking half. What they are supposed to do now is much less clear, after a change to those KPIs.

Southampton’s search for Still’s replacement is already well underway, and, despite their struggles this season, they remain an attractive proposition. Solak has shown a willingness to continue investing in the playing squad and they are performing way below their potential.

Even after the club’s disappointing start, which has them in 15th place, Southampton are only eight points behind the play-off spots — and the Championship campaign is not even a third of the way through yet.

But if the replacement for Still proves to be another miss, then that will undoubtedly lead more criticism to Sport Republic’s door.

For a fan base that has had nothing to cling to in the past couple of years, and which has had the joy sucked out of the football they have been paying to watch, the club is under pressure to get the appointment right — and for the players to show a bit more effort than they have over the past year.

Sounds like a fucking shambles.

Sport Republic out!

[AlexLaw76]

9 minutes ago, benjii said:

Sounds like a fucking shambles.

Sport Republic out!

Still was not strong enough to be heard properly.

what a state.

[egg]

 

31 minutes ago, 23rdSaint said:

The full article, if anyone's interested:

 

The Athletic: What is going wrong at Southampton?

by Dan Sheldon with Jacob Tanswell

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6786896/2025/11/07/southampton-will-still-sport-republic-analysis/

Johannes Spors, Southampton’s technical director, was on his feet addressing the club’s players in the auditorium at their Staplewood training ground on Monday, the day after a decision was made to sack Will Still just five months into his tenure.

After saying a few words, Spors handed the floor to Tonda Eckert, Southampton’s under-21s head coach, who had just been appointed the interim first team boss.

Eckert, standing up, initially said nothing, instead choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other. After the silence, he then said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes.”

It certainly caught the attention of the squad — according to sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships — and his messaging throughout his first couple of days in interim charge ultimately worked as he oversaw a victory away to Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday night. It was Southampton’s first league win since September 30.

Three points would have come as a welcome reprieve for Sport Republic — the club’s ownership group headed up by lead investor Dragan Solak — who had been subject to much of the fans’ ire in recent weeks.

Since acquiring the club in January 2022, Sport Republic, not for a lack of investment, has presided over a dismal record.

There have been two Premier League relegations either side of their Championship play-off triumph in 2023-24, and a slew of disastrous managerial appointments, with Nathan Jones, Ruben Selles and Ivan Juric only registering one league win each, a record Still narrowly bettered with two victories.

Only Russell Martin, who led them to the play-off win in 2024, could be deemed a success, although his tenure ended on a sour note after he was sacked during a woeful Premier League campaign the following season.

Still’s axing has left them searching for yet another manager and poses further questions about how Southampton is being run from the top down.

Still, then aged 32, joined Southampton on a three-year deal in May, an appointment and recruitment process led by Spors, and arrived with a good reputation from his work in France’s Ligue 1, where he had previously been the head coach of Reims and Lens.

In line with his upward trajectory, Southampton was the biggest job of his young career and he arrived at a time when the club was at its lowest moment after a shambolic Premier League season in 2024-25 that saw them finish bottom of the table.

Southampton, via Solak’s money and Spors’ recruitment strategy, invested heavily in the summer, spending in the region of £50million on Finn Azaz, Caspar Jander, Tom Fellows, Leo Scienza, Damion Downs and Joshua Quarshie.

This spending was offset by more than £100m being generated in sales after Tyler Dibling, Mateus Fernandes, Kamaldeen Sulemana, Jan Bednarek, Sam Amo-Ameyaw and Paul Onuachu were sold.

There is a view from sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, that the summer’s recruitment did not suit the profile of player Still had been accustomed to coaching in France.

Sources close to Still, also speaking on the condition of anonymity for the same reasons, echoed that sentiment and suggested, in hindsight, that he could have been more vocal on the incomings and outgoings to ensure he had a suitable squad at his disposal.

There is also a sense that he could have pushed harder on the make-up of his coaching staff, with Adam Lallana and Carl Martin already at Southampton when he arrived. The only coach Still brought to St Mary’s was Ruben Martinez, the goalkeeper coach.

Clement Lemaitre, who also joined at the same time as Still, worked as a video analyst. Both Martinez and Lemaitre were dismissed, as was Martin, who had spent seven years at the club.

Even though Still was generally well-liked by the players and fundamentally viewed as a good person, a common criticism has emerged that centres on his personality not being the right one to drive through the change required to lift the mood — which was at rock bottom — and provide a sense of freshness.

An example of how he didn’t particularly help himself is when it came to training. He would religiously stick to only doing tactical work with the starting XI throughout the week, meaning there was a lack of focus on what the substitutes should be doing when they are brought on.

As Still retreated to his office at St Mary’s on Saturday evening, following a terrible defeat at home to Preston North End, he knew the writing was on the wall.

But to lay the blame solely at Still’s door for what has transpired at Southampton this season would be to overlook the malaise and flux that stems from the top down and into the dressing room.

You don’t have to look too far back to a time when Southampton’s dressing room was dominated by leaders who set high standards, be it Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Steven Davis, or even Theo Walcott on his return to the club in 2021. They wanted to sign Danny Ings, their former striker in the summer, but a deal failed to materialise.

An indication of the dearth of leaders within the first team is shown by Sport Republic signing Oriol Romeu as a free agent three years after they sold him, with Spors even referencing the fact that the midfielder will “play a vital role in terms of the culture (we) want to instil throughout the squad” in the statement.

“Every time there is a scrap on the pitch, there is nobody there kicking off…they (the players) don’t have an edge,” said a source close to one of the first-team players. “And when they concede, everyone just throws their hands in the air. There is no hunger to defend.”

In recent months, clearly recognising something wasn’t quite adding up despite the vast sums of money being spent, Solak moved Henrik Kraft, one of Sport Republic’s co-founders and Southampton’s chairman, to one side. Rasmus Ankersen, also a co-founder of the ownership group, now plays a much less hands-on role.

At the same time, Solak has become increasingly hands-on, and was at Loftus Road on Wednesday evening, where he sat alongside Phil Parsons, Southampton’s chief executive, Spors and Ankersen.

One commonly held opinion from people with knowledge of the dynamics behind the scenes at board level is that there is a culture of blame as opposed to one of responsibility. So, when things go badly, as they have been doing in recent years, nobody steps forward and owns it. Instead, a blame game takes place.

A wider example of this can be seen within the academy, which was once feted as arguably the best in the country and arguably one of the better proving grounds in Europe. But that reputation has dwindled over the years.

Highly-talented players now move on, whether that is Jimmy-Jay Morgan joining Chelsea, Harley Emsden-James opting to leave for Manchester United, Harrison Miles signing for Manchester City, or Alejandro Gomes Rodriguez swapping the south coast for Lyon.

Of course, money can be a factor in decisions to leave, with Southampton unable or unwilling to match what their academy rivals can offer, but the pathway to the first team has also narrowed.

During a wider strategy day last season, the club set a target to become the country’s best academy. 2027 was discussed as one option, but they opted for 2030 as the goal, as that was considered more realistic.

Academy sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity to protect relationships, detail confusion within the setup about how quickly they are asked to change direction in terms of playing styles. This, however, is perhaps more indicative of the changing of philosophies at senior first-team level.

Academy coaches, for example, were told they need to implement a high-possession style from under-9 level — coinciding with Jason Wilcox and Martin’s arrival at the club — and were set key performance indicators (KPIs), some of which were measured in percentages. This notably included heavy possession and sustained control of the ball in the attacking half. What they are supposed to do now is much less clear, after a change to those KPIs.

Southampton’s search for Still’s replacement is already well underway, and, despite their struggles this season, they remain an attractive proposition. Solak has shown a willingness to continue investing in the playing squad and they are performing way below their potential.

Even after the club’s disappointing start, which has them in 15th place, Southampton are only eight points behind the play-off spots — and the Championship campaign is not even a third of the way through yet.

But if the replacement for Still proves to be another miss, then that will undoubtedly lead more criticism to Sport Republic’s door.

For a fan base that has had nothing to cling to in the past couple of years, and which has had the joy sucked out of the football they have been paying to watch, the club is under pressure to get the appointment right — and for the players to show a bit more effort than they have over the past year.

"Hungry eyes", ffs. This is football, not dirty dancing

[saintant]

3 hours ago, 23rdSaint said:

The full article, if anyone's interested:

 

The Athletic: What is going wrong at Southampton?

by Dan Sheldon with Jacob Tanswell

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6786896/2025/11/07/southampton-will-still-sport-republic-analysis/

Johannes Spors, Southampton’s technical director, was on his feet addressing the club’s players in the auditorium at their Staplewood training ground on Monday, the day after a decision was made to sack Will Still just five months into his tenure.

After saying a few words, Spors handed the floor to Tonda Eckert, Southampton’s under-21s head coach, who had just been appointed the interim first team boss.

Eckert, standing up, initially said nothing, instead choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other. After the silence, he then said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes.”

It certainly caught the attention of the squad — according to sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships — and his messaging throughout his first couple of days in interim charge ultimately worked as he oversaw a victory away to Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday night. It was Southampton’s first league win since September 30.

Three points would have come as a welcome reprieve for Sport Republic — the club’s ownership group headed up by lead investor Dragan Solak — who had been subject to much of the fans’ ire in recent weeks.

Since acquiring the club in January 2022, Sport Republic, not for a lack of investment, has presided over a dismal record.

There have been two Premier League relegations either side of their Championship play-off triumph in 2023-24, and a slew of disastrous managerial appointments, with Nathan Jones, Ruben Selles and Ivan Juric only registering one league win each, a record Still narrowly bettered with two victories.

Only Russell Martin, who led them to the play-off win in 2024, could be deemed a success, although his tenure ended on a sour note after he was sacked during a woeful Premier League campaign the following season.

Still’s axing has left them searching for yet another manager and poses further questions about how Southampton is being run from the top down.

Still, then aged 32, joined Southampton on a three-year deal in May, an appointment and recruitment process led by Spors, and arrived with a good reputation from his work in France’s Ligue 1, where he had previously been the head coach of Reims and Lens.

In line with his upward trajectory, Southampton was the biggest job of his young career and he arrived at a time when the club was at its lowest moment after a shambolic Premier League season in 2024-25 that saw them finish bottom of the table.

Southampton, via Solak’s money and Spors’ recruitment strategy, invested heavily in the summer, spending in the region of £50million on Finn Azaz, Caspar Jander, Tom Fellows, Leo Scienza, Damion Downs and Joshua Quarshie.

This spending was offset by more than £100m being generated in sales after Tyler Dibling, Mateus Fernandes, Kamaldeen Sulemana, Jan Bednarek, Sam Amo-Ameyaw and Paul Onuachu were sold.

There is a view from sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, that the summer’s recruitment did not suit the profile of player Still had been accustomed to coaching in France.

Sources close to Still, also speaking on the condition of anonymity for the same reasons, echoed that sentiment and suggested, in hindsight, that he could have been more vocal on the incomings and outgoings to ensure he had a suitable squad at his disposal.

There is also a sense that he could have pushed harder on the make-up of his coaching staff, with Adam Lallana and Carl Martin already at Southampton when he arrived. The only coach Still brought to St Mary’s was Ruben Martinez, the goalkeeper coach.

Clement Lemaitre, who also joined at the same time as Still, worked as a video analyst. Both Martinez and Lemaitre were dismissed, as was Martin, who had spent seven years at the club.

Even though Still was generally well-liked by the players and fundamentally viewed as a good person, a common criticism has emerged that centres on his personality not being the right one to drive through the change required to lift the mood — which was at rock bottom — and provide a sense of freshness.

An example of how he didn’t particularly help himself is when it came to training. He would religiously stick to only doing tactical work with the starting XI throughout the week, meaning there was a lack of focus on what the substitutes should be doing when they are brought on.

As Still retreated to his office at St Mary’s on Saturday evening, following a terrible defeat at home to Preston North End, he knew the writing was on the wall.

But to lay the blame solely at Still’s door for what has transpired at Southampton this season would be to overlook the malaise and flux that stems from the top down and into the dressing room.

You don’t have to look too far back to a time when Southampton’s dressing room was dominated by leaders who set high standards, be it Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Steven Davis, or even Theo Walcott on his return to the club in 2021. They wanted to sign Danny Ings, their former striker in the summer, but a deal failed to materialise.

An indication of the dearth of leaders within the first team is shown by Sport Republic signing Oriol Romeu as a free agent three years after they sold him, with Spors even referencing the fact that the midfielder will “play a vital role in terms of the culture (we) want to instil throughout the squad” in the statement.

“Every time there is a scrap on the pitch, there is nobody there kicking off…they (the players) don’t have an edge,” said a source close to one of the first-team players. “And when they concede, everyone just throws their hands in the air. There is no hunger to defend.”

In recent months, clearly recognising something wasn’t quite adding up despite the vast sums of money being spent, Solak moved Henrik Kraft, one of Sport Republic’s co-founders and Southampton’s chairman, to one side. Rasmus Ankersen, also a co-founder of the ownership group, now plays a much less hands-on role.

At the same time, Solak has become increasingly hands-on, and was at Loftus Road on Wednesday evening, where he sat alongside Phil Parsons, Southampton’s chief executive, Spors and Ankersen.

One commonly held opinion from people with knowledge of the dynamics behind the scenes at board level is that there is a culture of blame as opposed to one of responsibility. So, when things go badly, as they have been doing in recent years, nobody steps forward and owns it. Instead, a blame game takes place.

A wider example of this can be seen within the academy, which was once feted as arguably the best in the country and arguably one of the better proving grounds in Europe. But that reputation has dwindled over the years.

Highly-talented players now move on, whether that is Jimmy-Jay Morgan joining Chelsea, Harley Emsden-James opting to leave for Manchester United, Harrison Miles signing for Manchester City, or Alejandro Gomes Rodriguez swapping the south coast for Lyon.

Of course, money can be a factor in decisions to leave, with Southampton unable or unwilling to match what their academy rivals can offer, but the pathway to the first team has also narrowed.

During a wider strategy day last season, the club set a target to become the country’s best academy. 2027 was discussed as one option, but they opted for 2030 as the goal, as that was considered more realistic.

Academy sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity to protect relationships, detail confusion within the setup about how quickly they are asked to change direction in terms of playing styles. This, however, is perhaps more indicative of the changing of philosophies at senior first-team level.

Academy coaches, for example, were told they need to implement a high-possession style from under-9 level — coinciding with Jason Wilcox and Martin’s arrival at the club — and were set key performance indicators (KPIs), some of which were measured in percentages. This notably included heavy possession and sustained control of the ball in the attacking half. What they are supposed to do now is much less clear, after a change to those KPIs.

Southampton’s search for Still’s replacement is already well underway, and, despite their struggles this season, they remain an attractive proposition. Solak has shown a willingness to continue investing in the playing squad and they are performing way below their potential.

Even after the club’s disappointing start, which has them in 15th place, Southampton are only eight points behind the play-off spots — and the Championship campaign is not even a third of the way through yet.

But if the replacement for Still proves to be another miss, then that will undoubtedly lead more criticism to Sport Republic’s door.

For a fan base that has had nothing to cling to in the past couple of years, and which has had the joy sucked out of the football they have been paying to watch, the club is under pressure to get the appointment right — and for the players to show a bit more effort than they have over the past year.

There's a lot here which rings massive alarm bells and shows exactly why the club is in such a mess. Sounds a complete and utter shambles from the top down. It needs a big personality with a proven track record to be appointed by Solak to take overall control of every aspect of the footballing side, someone who will command respect, rule with an iron rod and crack down hard to get this club going in the right direction. Not a multi club man but somebody who purely concentrates on what is best for Southampton FC.

[bugenhagen]

10 minutes ago, saintant said:

There's a lot here which rings massive alarm bells and shows exactly why the club is in such a mess. Sounds a complete and utter shambles from the top down. It needs a big personality with a proven track record to be appointed by Solak to take overall control of every aspect of the footballing side, someone who will command respect, rule with an iron rod and crack down hard to get this club going in the right direction. Not a multi club man but somebody who purely concentrates on what is best for Southampton FC.

I agree, but would they ever appoint someone like that? Even if they wanted a change, would you back them to get i right? Sorry, I just don't even have any hope anymore with this lot in charge.

[sockeye]

I would be interested in hearing more about this 'blame game' that is happening in the boardroom.

[trousers]

4 hours ago, 23rdSaint said:

The full article, if anyone's interested:

 

The Athletic: What is going wrong at Southampton?

by Dan Sheldon with Jacob Tanswell

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6786896/2025/11/07/southampton-will-still-sport-republic-analysis/

Johannes Spors, Southampton’s technical director, was on his feet addressing the club’s players in the auditorium at their Staplewood training ground on Monday, the day after a decision was made to sack Will Still just five months into his tenure.

After saying a few words, Spors handed the floor to Tonda Eckert, Southampton’s under-21s head coach, who had just been appointed the interim first team boss.

Eckert, standing up, initially said nothing, instead choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other. After the silence, he then said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes.”

It certainly caught the attention of the squad — according to sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships — and his messaging throughout his first couple of days in interim charge ultimately worked as he oversaw a victory away to Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday night. It was Southampton’s first league win since September 30.

Three points would have come as a welcome reprieve for Sport Republic — the club’s ownership group headed up by lead investor Dragan Solak — who had been subject to much of the fans’ ire in recent weeks.

Since acquiring the club in January 2022, Sport Republic, not for a lack of investment, has presided over a dismal record.

There have been two Premier League relegations either side of their Championship play-off triumph in 2023-24, and a slew of disastrous managerial appointments, with Nathan Jones, Ruben Selles and Ivan Juric only registering one league win each, a record Still narrowly bettered with two victories.

Only Russell Martin, who led them to the play-off win in 2024, could be deemed a success, although his tenure ended on a sour note after he was sacked during a woeful Premier League campaign the following season.

Still’s axing has left them searching for yet another manager and poses further questions about how Southampton is being run from the top down.

Still, then aged 32, joined Southampton on a three-year deal in May, an appointment and recruitment process led by Spors, and arrived with a good reputation from his work in France’s Ligue 1, where he had previously been the head coach of Reims and Lens.

In line with his upward trajectory, Southampton was the biggest job of his young career and he arrived at a time when the club was at its lowest moment after a shambolic Premier League season in 2024-25 that saw them finish bottom of the table.

Southampton, via Solak’s money and Spors’ recruitment strategy, invested heavily in the summer, spending in the region of £50million on Finn Azaz, Caspar Jander, Tom Fellows, Leo Scienza, Damion Downs and Joshua Quarshie.

This spending was offset by more than £100m being generated in sales after Tyler Dibling, Mateus Fernandes, Kamaldeen Sulemana, Jan Bednarek, Sam Amo-Ameyaw and Paul Onuachu were sold.

There is a view from sources close to Southampton’s dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, that the summer’s recruitment did not suit the profile of player Still had been accustomed to coaching in France.

Sources close to Still, also speaking on the condition of anonymity for the same reasons, echoed that sentiment and suggested, in hindsight, that he could have been more vocal on the incomings and outgoings to ensure he had a suitable squad at his disposal.

There is also a sense that he could have pushed harder on the make-up of his coaching staff, with Adam Lallana and Carl Martin already at Southampton when he arrived. The only coach Still brought to St Mary’s was Ruben Martinez, the goalkeeper coach.

Clement Lemaitre, who also joined at the same time as Still, worked as a video analyst. Both Martinez and Lemaitre were dismissed, as was Martin, who had spent seven years at the club.

Even though Still was generally well-liked by the players and fundamentally viewed as a good person, a common criticism has emerged that centres on his personality not being the right one to drive through the change required to lift the mood — which was at rock bottom — and provide a sense of freshness.

An example of how he didn’t particularly help himself is when it came to training. He would religiously stick to only doing tactical work with the starting XI throughout the week, meaning there was a lack of focus on what the substitutes should be doing when they are brought on.

As Still retreated to his office at St Mary’s on Saturday evening, following a terrible defeat at home to Preston North End, he knew the writing was on the wall.

But to lay the blame solely at Still’s door for what has transpired at Southampton this season would be to overlook the malaise and flux that stems from the top down and into the dressing room.

You don’t have to look too far back to a time when Southampton’s dressing room was dominated by leaders who set high standards, be it Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Steven Davis, or even Theo Walcott on his return to the club in 2021. They wanted to sign Danny Ings, their former striker in the summer, but a deal failed to materialise.

An indication of the dearth of leaders within the first team is shown by Sport Republic signing Oriol Romeu as a free agent three years after they sold him, with Spors even referencing the fact that the midfielder will “play a vital role in terms of the culture (we) want to instil throughout the squad” in the statement.

“Every time there is a scrap on the pitch, there is nobody there kicking off…they (the players) don’t have an edge,” said a source close to one of the first-team players. “And when they concede, everyone just throws their hands in the air. There is no hunger to defend.”

In recent months, clearly recognising something wasn’t quite adding up despite the vast sums of money being spent, Solak moved Henrik Kraft, one of Sport Republic’s co-founders and Southampton’s chairman, to one side. Rasmus Ankersen, also a co-founder of the ownership group, now plays a much less hands-on role.

At the same time, Solak has become increasingly hands-on, and was at Loftus Road on Wednesday evening, where he sat alongside Phil Parsons, Southampton’s chief executive, Spors and Ankersen.

One commonly held opinion from people with knowledge of the dynamics behind the scenes at board level is that there is a culture of blame as opposed to one of responsibility. So, when things go badly, as they have been doing in recent years, nobody steps forward and owns it. Instead, a blame game takes place.

A wider example of this can be seen within the academy, which was once feted as arguably the best in the country and arguably one of the better proving grounds in Europe. But that reputation has dwindled over the years.

Highly-talented players now move on, whether that is Jimmy-Jay Morgan joining Chelsea, Harley Emsden-James opting to leave for Manchester United, Harrison Miles signing for Manchester City, or Alejandro Gomes Rodriguez swapping the south coast for Lyon.

Of course, money can be a factor in decisions to leave, with Southampton unable or unwilling to match what their academy rivals can offer, but the pathway to the first team has also narrowed.

During a wider strategy day last season, the club set a target to become the country’s best academy. 2027 was discussed as one option, but they opted for 2030 as the goal, as that was considered more realistic.

Academy sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity to protect relationships, detail confusion within the setup about how quickly they are asked to change direction in terms of playing styles. This, however, is perhaps more indicative of the changing of philosophies at senior first-team level.

Academy coaches, for example, were told they need to implement a high-possession style from under-9 level — coinciding with Jason Wilcox and Martin’s arrival at the club — and were set key performance indicators (KPIs), some of which were measured in percentages. This notably included heavy possession and sustained control of the ball in the attacking half. What they are supposed to do now is much less clear, after a change to those KPIs.

Southampton’s search for Still’s replacement is already well underway, and, despite their struggles this season, they remain an attractive proposition. Solak has shown a willingness to continue investing in the playing squad and they are performing way below their potential.

Even after the club’s disappointing start, which has them in 15th place, Southampton are only eight points behind the play-off spots — and the Championship campaign is not even a third of the way through yet.

But if the replacement for Still proves to be another miss, then that will undoubtedly lead more criticism to Sport Republic’s door.

For a fan base that has had nothing to cling to in the past couple of years, and which has had the joy sucked out of the football they have been paying to watch, the club is under pressure to get the appointment right — and for the players to show a bit more effort than they have over the past year.

The sad thing is, none of that surprises me. In fact, it's been blatantly obvious for ages that the current ownership would struggle to run a bath, let alone a football club. The only way this farce ends is when they sell up. It's as simple as that. 

[Maggie May]

4 hours ago, AlexLaw76 said:

🚨 In his first meeting with the senior squad on Monday, Tonda Eckert initially said nothing, choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other –– after the silence, he said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes

Baz and Stephens got back in the team because they were the only pairing able to do the Dirty Dancing lift. 

[Turkish]

5 hours ago, AlexLaw76 said:

🚨 In his first meeting with the senior squad on Monday, Tonda Eckert initially said nothing, choosing to look each player in the eye one after the other –– after the silence, he said, “Hungry eyes. I want to see hungry eyes

You can only imagine how absolutely cringe this was. 

[saintant]

8 hours ago, bugenhagen said:

I agree, but would they ever appoint someone like that? Even if they wanted a change, would you back them to get i right? Sorry, I just don't even have any hope anymore with this lot in charge.

Agree the SR guys wouldn't but it's surely in Solak's interest to take some advice elsewhere, identify the man for the job and appoint him over the heads of the other nomarks. Solak is top dog and is the main money source.

[Football Special]

7 hours ago, Turkish said:

You can only imagine how absolutely cringe this was. 

Put yourself in the players shoes, you would feel inspired would you not? 

Or maybe it was just before lunchtime and the players were actually starving 

[Turkish]

8 hours ago, Maggie May said:

Baz and Stephens got back in the team because they were the only pairing able to do the Dirty Dancing lift. 

Surprised at that Stephens would have been in the wrong position and Baz would have dropped him