da dobrowin： Southampton return to action in the Championship this weekend as they prepare to travel to Charlton on Saturday, and they appear no closer to appointing a permanent successor to Will Still.
da leao： TalkSPORT recently claimed that Sport Republic are ‘seriously considering’ appointing current interim manager Tonda Eckert on a permanent basis, after his first two matches in the dugout.
The 32-year-old head coach is set to lead the team out for a third game against Charlton this weekend, and another win would do his chances of landing the role no harm.
Why Southampton should not appoint Tonda Eckert
Eckert deserves credit for providing the team with an instant boost after Still’s departure, as he masterminded a 2-1 win over QPR and a 3-1 win over Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship.
However, it may not be the right time to appoint him as the permanent head coach because of his lack of experience in first-team management in his career so far.
Eckert had only ever been an assistant manager before his move to join the U21s as their head coach this summer, and he managed nine Premier League 2 matches before his two senior games as the current interim, per Transfermarkt.
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This means that Southampton have no evidence available to judge what an Eckert team will look like in 15, 20, or 30 games, or if he has the first-team coaching ability to lead a promotion push.
Earlier this month, Michael Carrick was named as a reported contender for the job, and hiring the former Middlesbrough boss could end the Eckert experiment at St. Mary’s.
Why Southampton should hire Michael Carrick
Unlike the German interim, Carrick would arrive on the south coast with bundles of Championship experience as a manager, which may be what the Saints need right now.
The former Manchester United midfielder, who was hailed as an “insanely talented coach” by former Boro player Lukas Engel, has been out of work since moving on from Middlesbrough at the end of last season.
Carrick also has the specific experience of taking over a team in a similar position to the one that Southampton are in now and leading them to a play-off finish, as that is what he did with Boro in the 2022/23 campaign.
Matches
16
30
Wins
4
18
Draws
5
4
Losses
7
8
Points
17
58
Points per game
1.06
1.93
League position
18th
4th
As you can see in the table above, the 4-2-3-1 tactician took over with Middlesbrough after they had a dismal start to the season, in 18th place, and led them to fourth and the play-offs.
Southampton are currently 17th after 15 matches, with 18 points on the board, which means that Carrick would arrive in an incredibly similar situation at St. Mary’s. This could make him the ideal candidate for the job, as he has very specific experience for the job that is required.
Some supporters may see that he finished 10th and eighth in his last two seasons with Boro, but the underlying numbers behind those two campaigns suggest that he was let down by his squad.
League finish
8th
10th
xPTS (Expected league finish)
73 (5th)
71 (6th)
xG
69.5
67.4
xGA
55.0
56.4
xGD
+14.5
+11.3
As you can see in the table above, Boro ranked inside the top six for xPTS in both of those seasons, suggesting that their performances were of a play-off calibre, but the players did not make the most of those performances to pick up the results needed.
This is why Southampton should not be put off by Carrick’s ‘failure’ to get Boro in the play-offs in the last two seasons, and is further evidence that he could be a major upgrade on the inexperienced Eckert.
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Therefore, the out-of-work English manager could be the perfect hire for Southampton for the position that they currently find themselves in, as he has the coaching ability and experience to drive the team back up the table to fight for the play-offs.