Nathan Jones

[Mr X]

4 minutes ago, Lord Duckhunter said:

Haven’t got a clue about the bloke, but I want British managers who do well in the championship to have a pathway to the premier league. Hopefully he’ll do ok and other clubs will start to realise there are some decent managers & tacticians at the lower level that deserve a chance. Big opportunity for the guy, and a big gamble by the hierarchy, let’s hope it pays off. 

I hope he does well and time will tell as you say a huge gamble, but should it all go tits up who is to blame as we don't even know who in the senior management structure appointed him? 

[Fan The Flames]

22 minutes ago, Mr X said:

I guess the only saving grace is he will want to do well as it will probably be his only chance at the premier league and he will want to make a name for himself 

I would have thought that most managers start out wanting to do a good job.

[Sheaf Saint]

51 minutes ago, skintsaint said:

Who needs luck with 14.32% of the population behind you.

 

14.32% of a very small sample of Saints fans on an internet forum. Regardless how low that might look, it still doesn't equate to 'nobody' does it.

I voted unsure, because I had never heard of him before this week and I'm obviously not privvy to whatever information SR have based their decision on. But I trust they have done their due diligence and that this isn't just a cheap, spur of the moment decision.

Looking at some of the utterly moronic comments I have seen so far from those opposed to him, let's put it this way: I'm really fucking glad these people aren't actually the ones being charged with making this decision.

Edited 10 November, 2022 by Sheaf Saint

[Ted Bates Statue]

2 minutes ago, Mr X said:

I hope he does well and time will tell as you say a huge gamble, but should it all go tits up who is to blame as we don't even know who in the senior management structure appointed him? 

We pretty much do know it was Ankersen and Crocker.

I wouldn't have thought of Nathan Jones as our first choice personally, but if he's their choice then I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. When both of those guys joined us, they were appointments universally well-received. Now they get to exercise their judgment which I would give slightly more weight to over my opinion. This isn't Rupert Lowe appointing some clown from Garforth Town, or Les Reed and his hubris doing a run-through of the latest list of out-of-work managers under the guise of the black box. We haven't rushed the process, and we haven't been put off by having to pay compensation. If we are paying compensation, it's because they believe they've found the next Thomas Frank or Steve Cooper. I

think a lot of the negativity is snobbery over resorting to poaching from Luton Town rather than River Plate. Some of the negativity on here and on the Ugly Inside is way over the top. I'm not expecting champagne football, I no longer harbour expectations of slotting into the top 10 like I thought might be possible at times under Hasenhuttl, but I think this guy will do the job of eking out more from the squad right now to get us to stay up, keep us from falling adrift until we improve the squad with the January signings we missed out on in the summer.

I reckon we will be ok.

[Mr X]

29 minutes ago, Fan The Flames said:

I would have thought that most managers start out wanting to do a good job.

That's true but particularly applied to people who have made the step up to the premier league 

[OttawaSaint]

Hopefully this goes well. Maybe half time prayers will help this lot find the net. 

Edited 10 November, 2022 by OttawaSaint

[Miltonaggro]

1 hour ago, Mr X said:

I guess the only saving grace is he will want to do well as it will probably be his only chance at the premier league and he will want to make a name for himself 

If there is an issue I don't think it will be self-belief or work ethic. 

[BERMUDASAINT]

Welcome NJ, never heard of you, but will support you and our team!! Like your philosophy and ethos on how to manage a team.

Our new owners are constantly surprising me with their choices, never a clue as to what they will invest in, but always alot of research and thought into what they want. Because they uncover hidden gems, I will be constantly clueless as to their thinking as they don't choose the established, the known, the obvious. That moneyball tactic will always mean excitement and anxiety in equal measure. This is the biggest test for them as it is their choice of a new manager and how they see us going forward with their 1st choice managerial appointment. 

[JRM]

26 minutes ago, Ted Bates Statue said:

We pretty much do know it was Ankersen and Crocker.

I wouldn't have thought of Nathan Jones as our first choice personally, but if he's their choice then I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. When both of those guys joined us, they were appointments universally well-received. Now they get to exercise their judgment which I would give slightly more weight to over my opinion. This isn't Rupert Lowe appointing some clown from Garforth Town, or Les Reed and his hubris doing a run-through of the latest list of out-of-work managers under the guise of the black box. We haven't rushed the process, and we haven't been put off by having to pay compensation. If we are paying compensation, it's because they believe they've found the next Thomas Frank or Steve Cooper. I

think a lot of the negativity is snobbery over resorting to poaching from Luton Town rather than River Plate. Some of the negativity on here and on the Ugly Inside is way over the top. I'm not expecting champagne football, I no longer harbour expectations of slotting into the top 10 like I thought might be possible at times under Hasenhuttl, but I think this guy will do the job of eking out more from the squad right now to get us to stay up, keep us from falling adrift until we improve the squad with the January signings we missed out on in the summer.

I reckon we will be ok.

Forgot about those Lowe appointments, what's Clive Woodward up to nowadays? 

[Killers Knee]

Mad Nate, if your only success is to stop both Che Adams and Adam Armstrong from having total mental meltdowns whenever in shooting distance with the ball, and Mara to bulk up a bit with muscle then your tenure here will be considered a success.

[West end Saints]

I remember this Poch appointment was ridiculed, on here and by likes of Lawrie (very strongly). 

Any appointment is a gamble. 

I can only think of maybe a couple appointments which would have been possible and met with wide spread confidence. 

There are many moans who then say their preference, which others would moan about. 

We have lack positivity, energy, and togetherness recently - maybe he can add these

[JRM]

1 minute ago, West end Saints said:

I remember this Poch appointment was ridiculed, on here and by likes of Lawrie (very strongly). 

Any appointment is a gamble. 

I can only think of maybe a couple appointments which would have been possible and met with wide spread confidence. 

There are many moans who then say their preference, which others would moan about. 

We have lack positivity, energy, and togetherness recently - maybe he can add these

Do you remember the white hankey protest after Adkins was replaced by Poch? 

[tajjuk]

1 hour ago, Fan The Flames said:

I am probably clueless here, but I understand how data crunching can find under valued players or players that have certain traints. But I can't see how it can identify an under valued manager.

How is he 'under valued'? He was Championship manager of the year last year. Also according to him he has had multiple approaches from clubs (and youd have to presume they were bigger championship and lower PL clubs for them to be a step up) but he was wanting the right fit, presumably as he'd jumped into Stoke and then realised what a shambles they were from top to bottom (as evidenced by their continued struggles and changes of manager). 

What I find odd is people seemed to like the potential of Steve Cooper until he signed his new contract, who until this season had never managed in PL before and basically only had Championship experience. Plus despite is promotion last year, Nathan Jones was voted manager of the year ahead of Steve Cooper.

[FarehamSaintJames]

It’ll be interesting to see how this unfolds really. Obviously he isn’t going to be able to hit the ground running as such because there’s only one game left before Boxing Day.

He will need to nail that January period, not just performances but results as well. Otherwise fans will be on his back and the boards very quickly!

[Monkeyboy]

Does this mean a return of the nuns? 🙏

[waylander]

Welcome NJ

My physiotherapist - a sports specialist who has worked extensively with pro clubs (and Southampton) - says he is very highly thought of within the pro game.

[saintant]

5 hours ago, Saint Fan CaM said:

Welcome Nathan - I hope you’ll do well at our club and achieve the success we all crave for. You’ll get my support if I see better more dynamic performances from our team.

Like others this seems an underwhelming appointment - one born of dogma and belief that the ‘Saints way’ is the best and only way, which has seen us steadily decline over the years since Koeman and Poch. So my biggest concern is not Nathan as such, but that he will continue with the same footballing philosophy and system employed by others…i.e. slow build up play. When I saw Sheffield Wednesday last night it was immediately apparent that even a L1 team moved the ball faster in transition and attack than we did and that was shocking. It’s the essence of why we’ve lost so many games and score so few goals.

Our new Manager has got a huge task therefore in turning our fortunes around. He also needs significant backing early in the January window at least in a very decent 15 goal a season striker. It’s another rollercoaster for us Saints fans I feel.

You will not gt a 15 goal a season striker in the January window unless you are very lucky.

[pimpin4rizeal]

2 hours ago, Sheaf Saint said:

Not sure where you get 'NOBODY' from...

 

Considering that’s a poll taken when we pretty much knew he was our man it’s not great is it.. how many would have suggested him over gallardo svenson kompany etc..

But it’s done now let’s just hope it works out

[Dorchester Saint]

38 minutes ago, JRM said:

Do you remember the white hankey protest after Adkins was replaced by Poch? 

Thanks for reminding me, I just fucking cringed!! What a bunch of fannies !!

[saintant]

Welcome Nathan and let's all hope this appointment works out. We have to remember this is the first such appointment under our new owners. When they bought the club many of us were excited to learn about the names behind SR and viewed them as something of a breath of fresh air. They came across as analytical, data driven and experts who paid attention to detail. Now they have appointed their first new manager and it is clear they've had Nathan Jones under their microscope for some time and decided he fits with their ambitions. Yet, because it's not a big name signing, many are already writing Jones off without giving him a chance. Either we trust SR or we don't so let's see how they do with this crucial  appointment at a critical time for the club. I have a sneaky feeling we are going to be surprised in a good way. Nathan Jones comes across very well in his first interview and says all the right stuff as one would expect but I get the feeling he has something about him that might just galvanise our squad into action after a period of under achievement. If he can get some decent performances and results early on he'll soon have the fans onside although maybe his honeymoon period will be brief. Let's appreciate he is stepping in at a difficult time and see what he can do rather than pre-judging him and chucking our toys out the pram because he's not the big name some wanted - maybe he'll work out better in the long run. Good luck Nathan and to the two other new coaches as well.

[SNSUN]

Welcome Nate. Hope he's better than our last Welsh manager, which means not just keeping us in the league but building on it. I'd take the former right now. 

 

Seeing as I'm already predicting us for relegation this season, the bar is pretty low so maybe Jones can surprise us. It won't happen against Liverpool but at least he's got the WC to try and get his tactics implemented for Boxing Day. 

 

We have the most important transfer window of our lives coming up too. At least we can go into it with a fairly settled managerial team.

 

I'm not dancing over the moon (or whatever the phrase is) with this appointment but he gets my support no different to any other manager. For now.

[washsaint]

Complete meh from me.  Totally underwhelming and not looking forward to defensive hoof ball - seen enough of that recently.

[OldNick]

33 minutes ago, saintant said:

You will not gt a 15 goal a season striker in the January window unless you are very lucky.

To be fair we only need a 10 goal a half season striker

[igsey]

A kind Luton Town fan on Reddit wrote an overview of NJ's time at Luton and what we can expect. I have to say, it's made me feel much more optimistic:

Quote

 

Hi guys. On another thread I mentioned writing a post about what Nathan Jones has done to Luton Town since he first came in early 2016, including his tactics, recruitment policies, and player development strategies. While I can't say NJ is the perfect manager, he is certainly a capable tactician, and is well aware of his own shortcomings as well as being able to stick to a tight budget. This is a much longer post than I anticipated so the last section acts as a TL:DR so just scroll to that if you're short of time or can't be bothered to read the rest.

His Time at Luton

I think it's important to talk about his whole, albeit relatively short, managerial career in order to understand more about him both as a coach and as a person. In a nutshell, NJ took a team floundering in mid-table of League Two, to a Championship Play-off semi-final, whilst working with the smallest budget in the second tier. That's the real headline, but what's more impressive is the long-term culture transformation he instilled along the way.

NJ took over with the club in 15th in League Two, and slowly but surely slipping back to non-league where we'd been just two seasons prior. His only managerial experience to date was a brief stint as a caretaker at then-Championship Brighton & Hove Albion, so some questions were understandably asked of the board as to why we've recruited a manager with no experience at this level to steer us from danger - not a dissimilar situation to what you guys find yourself in. The less old-fashioned of us, however, saw an extremely ambitious man who lives and breathes football.

The squad at the time was full of lower-league unambitious journeymen with a few very overpaid luxury players such as Craig Mackail-Smith, Josh McQuoid, and Danny Green. NJ solidified us in the last half of the season, finishing a respectable 11th place finish. The following summer, we said goodbye to the majority of the players that lifted the club from non-league obscurity, as NJ brutally cleared the squad of the old heads that were not fit for a club that he said "will be back in the Championship in a few years". Our fans were upset and confused by some, as fan favourites Alex Lawless, Paul Benson, Matt Robinson (now grime artist Kamakaze), and Jake Howells were released. Doubters were soon silenced when NJ brought in, among others, three excellent additions in Glen Rea (still with us), Alan Sheehan (now a first team coach), and club hero Danny Hylton. We finished 4th, ending the season with a heart-breaking play-off loss to Blackpool.

It was clear now, after 18 months what NJ was doing. The team was now playing a high-pressing, intense style of football, with lots of goals while being relatively solid too. Our young players were also playing very well, handing James Justin his debut, with ex-Hammers Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu and Dan Potts, who are both first-team players for us 5 years later, improving game-by-game. He further enhanced the squad with some extremely shrewd Moneyball-esque signings in future top-scorer James Collins and marauding fullback Jack Stacey, who we'd sell to Bournemouth a few years later for many millions.

Nothing so far is TOO remarkable, and you might be wondering why I'm telling you all this, but stick with me as it will all tie in. Our first season in League One went on to be our last, with the club achieving back-to-back promotion by absolutely walking the league. Why? A combination of more outstanding recruitment and tactics from NJ. He'd sign five players, who all played a crucial part, and prove to be some of the most important players, in our modern history: Matty Pearson and Sonny Bradley forged the best centre back partnership I've ever seen us have with the latter still our captain, Andy Shinnie, a Championship-level number 10 dubbed "Shinniesta" (enough said), George Moncur, who scored an incredible late free kick to beat Portsmouth (I know how you feel about them) 3-2 in what turned out to be our turning-point game, and Kazenga LuaLua whose importance will be mentioned later.

It is worth mentioning that NJ left for Stoke about halfway through this season, but his philosophy was so ingrained in the players that our caretaker manager and club icon Mick Harford had very little actual management to do - his words not mine - as the team walked to the League One title at the first time of asking, scoring 90 goals and not losing a single home game. But what were these tactics and philosophies? Now this is where it becomes relevant to Southampton, and I'll talk more about his second stint with us later. Also, hopefully now you've learned that NJ's eye for talent, both in terms of recruitment and getting the most out of a player, is exceptional.

Jones' Beloved Diamond

NJ's favourite tactic at his first stint with us was a 4-4-2 diamond, which relied very heavily on capable fullbacks, as James Justin and Jack Stacey's future price tags would prove. First, I'll show you how we lined up and how I imagine he'd line you up with it moving forward, but bear in mind that I am not 100% sure he'll play this as it didn't work at Stoke and he hasn't played it much with us in the Championship (he says our budget forces us to play a back 3). We played:

Shea

Stacey - Pearson - Bradley - Justin

Rea

Mpanzu - Berry

Lee

Cornick - Collins

If I had to translate that with your players, entirely like-for-like purely in terms of position, profile, and play-style, it would be:

Bazunu

Livramento - Bella-Kotchap - Salisu - Larios

Maitland-Niles

Lavia - Ward-Prowse

Aribo

A. Amrstrong - Adams

The tactic really lies with the ability of the single defensive midfielder to sit deep and help the centre backs out as much as possible while the full backs push forward, essentially creating a sort of 3-5-2. Larios and Livramento would be perfect for NJ, and he'd relish the chance to develop them further. I also wouldn't be surprised to see Djenepo on the left-hand side as he likes an inverted wing back occasionally. Walker-Peters would also be absolutely fine either side of that back four. Maitland-Niles, while not flashy, would do a fine job sweeping up loose midfield balls and dropping between centre backs.

In terms of advanced midfielders, the key in distribution. Diagonal balls, internal triangles, arriving late into the area... these are all things NJ would require from the three in front of the defensive midfielder. In my opinion, Ward-Prowse and Lavia are two standouts in your team, and would be absolutely perfectly suited to this system. An attacking midfielder with luxury traits and flair, who can arrive well for chances in the box, is what is needed too, and Aribo ticks those boxes well.

Strikers are going to be your most difficult spot to fill, in my opinion. In this particular formation, NJ would need a pure poacher (your version of Collins), but I don't think you have anyone. For now, Adams or maybe Mara could do a job but long term he'll look to buy a taller striker. Otherwise, he'll play a greyhound-like player to press defenders and make runs in the channels - enter Adam Armstrong. He isn't the best goal scorer at Premier League level, but neither is Cornick for us but he was very important.

Jones will need time to implement anything close to the success we had with this tactic, but the basic idea is very simple, and with the players you have in your squad, he's bound to make something work whether it's this or another tactic I'll go through soon.

The Elephant in the Room

NJ had two seasons (well, technically 1.5) of success with his diamond, achieving automatic promotion both times. However, he couldn't get it to work at Stoke City, which he know blames on the attitude of the players he had at his disposal and the general atmosphere at the club. He clearly didn't have time to bring in the players he wanted. It's hard to defend his time at Stoke, but I truly believe his time there is misunderstood, and the failure overstated.

NJ left us in a promotion spot in January 2019 for Stoke, who offered him a huge financial package that he'd have been stupid to turn down. At the time, our board were very angry with the way both Stoke and NJ went about the deal, something that they've praised about the Saints' approach thus far. NJ said he regrets the decision and has grown as a person as a result, vowing to never repeat the same mistake. This suggests two things which I think are valuable to you lot: 1) he will only leave for a convincing and ambitious project, reinforced by his post-match interview last night; and 2) his professionalism and cooperation with the club hierarchy has grown on a personal level, which is something any Luton fan can anecdotally attest to as well. He clearly thinks the board at Southampton have a clear vision in mind and will give him the time that Stoke didn't, otherwise he wouldn't be entertaining the proposition.

At Stoke, NJ's team struggled for goals, and they drew most of their games. They weren't as bad as people make out, and even if they were, it was hardly NJ's fault, evident by the failures of their managers since. The Stoke job is a poisoned chalice right now, and has been since their relegation from the Premier League. I implore you guys to not get too hung up on that blip in his career, for your own sake and his.

The Great Escape and the Dawn of the Back Five

Our first season back in the Championship was a disaster, replacing Nathan Jones with Graeme Jones, but he was nothing like his namesake. He was stubborn and moody, tactically over-ambitious, awful with both the players, fans, and the media, terrible with recruitment, and was on course to drag us right back down again. He, unlike his predecessor, couldn't translate his coaching skills into a managerial role.

When Covid-19 struck, so did we, sacking Graeme Jones and bringing back NJ to the dismay of many of our fans. Luckily for NJ, the lockdown meant the fans couldn't get on his back as we completed what we call the "Great Escape". NJ had nine games to keep us up, with us sitting five points adrift on his return. Not only did he do so, losing just one game in this time, we actually finished a respectable 19th. NJ reinstated his remaining League One favourites who Graeme Jones had frozen out, including Elliot Lee, Luke Berry, and Kazenga LuaLua who I mentioned earlier and who scored a screamer against Hull which essentially kept us in the league. In fact, only one of the 12 goals we scored in the escape was by a player NJ DIDN'T sign (Callum McManaman).

NJ had come back and relit the fire that he himself put out. The fans were back on his side, while the board the players never even left his side. This is something you'll learn, he has a knack of getting the players to die for him. He says it all the time in his interviews - our squad will do whatever is necessary to win, whether it's playing whilst unfit or playing out of position, it's just the atmosphere he creates within the squad. It's so evident because we still have some of the League Two signings in our squad today, playing way beyond their natural level through sheer effort and determination. Fans of other clubs in the league refer to us as "passion merchants" all the time.

This isn't the only reason we punch above out weight, though. A lot of it is down to NJ's new favourite tactic which is well-suited to underdogs where raw talent won't suffice - a similar situation to what you guys find yourselves in this season. Brace yourselves... it's a route one back five. Yep, a total departure from the free-flowing diamond mentioned earlier. But it's a testament to NJ's versatility and willingness to try whatever it takes to get results. In truth, it's what I imagine he'll initially set up with while you're in a relegation scrap in order to pick up the odd point against the bigger sides. It works for us, trust me. Here's what we played last season, at its peak:

Steer

Burke - Bradley - Naismith

Bree - Mpanzu - Lansbury - Campbell - Bell

Cornick - Adebayo

Seems simple, but it isn't really. It's lopsided, with the right-hand side pushing a lot further forward than the left. The left centre back is required to have excellent long ball-playing ability, something we've lacked since we lost Naismith. The right wing back and right centre back will both step forward while the left wing back supports the defenders. The middle central midfielder will typically sit deep whilst the other two essentially free-roam, collecting loose balls and playing them forward for Adebayo to knock down. Simple on paper, but require insane levels of fitness in practice, which I don't think will be a problem for you as your squad seems fit enough for sure. Here's how I think it translates:

Bazunu

Bella-Kotchap - Caleta-Car - Salisu

Livramento - Lavia - Ward-Prowse - Aribo - Perraud

Adams - *new striker*

NJ will buy a tall striker in the next available opportunity. He really needs someone 6'2"+ to knock it down in this system, and frankly I'm not sure you've got anyone cut out for it currently. I've put Perraud in as he is more physical than Larios. I've also got Ward-Prowse sitting deep, essentially playing like a deep-lying playmaker. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall played that role for us two season ago, so think how he plays at Leicester for comparison.

You may have noticed a lack of wingers in both formations, and you'd be correct to have done. He doesn't like them, frankly. Any winger you have will be converted to either a striker, a midfielder, or a fullback, else they'll be gone. I can see him playing Elyounoussi, S. Armstrong, and Edozie as attacking midfielders to some capacity, while Djenepo would make a good wing back under NJ, but he'll have no use for Walcott or Tella when he returns.

In All, This is What to Expect (TL:DR)

Right, so that's his tactics done and why he came to play them, so here is some more quickfire what to expect:

Positives:

• Will get the most out of players already at the club as long as they are humble enough to be played in unconventional roles
• Will relish the opportunity to work with and improve raw talents like Small, Larios, Mara, Livramento, and Smallbone in particular (as these guys' profiles resemble what he'll want in his ideal diamond tactic)
• Will relay as much passion as the fans give him, unequivocally
• Will adapt tactics both in game and long-term if it isn't working - something he's learned from his notoriously stubborn tenure at Stoke
• Will recruit outstandingly if given leeway and freedom in the market - signings that seem unusual tend to turn out the best.
• Will improve the ambition of the squad if they buy into his vision.

Negatives:

• Media-handling; the rest of the league's fans will loathe him, but you'll love him for it as it creates a great us-against-the-world mentality which ultimately wins game
• Has his favourites; rewarding loyalty is often a double-edged sword and is sometimes hesitant to acknowledge when a good servant is in bad form. He's also very data driven so will continue to play players who aren't meeting the eye-test or pleasing fans if their data is okay
• He'll sell your wingers if they can't prove to be adaptable to his full back-based systems
• Youth development is something he doesn't really consider that much, though this might be because our academy is years behind the first team. He considers 23 and 24 year olds as "youngsters" and will often only give them odd minutes.
• Doesn't take the domestic cups seriously, though he might at a club that actually has a chance of progressing past the early rounds like Southampton have.

Sorry for the long post guys but I hope it gives you a good understanding as to why he's absolutely worshipped at Luton Town. He's brought great success to us while galvanising the fan base and making us believe we can be a serious club again. He also fixed us financially and instilled a permanent transfer policy of developing under-utilised raw talent and developing them. Please give him a chance, he's a difficult character but the guy bleeds passion and will die for Southampton to do well, no matter the adversity. Thanks for reading and good luck for the season, we'll all be rooting for you from Bedfordshire.

EDIT: How could I forget his PowerPoints?! When he wants a player, he invited them to the training ground and shows them a PowerPoint presentation about where the club will be in x amount of years, and a detailed plan for their individual development. It's often joked about, but it really works and many of our signings have credited his presentations as the main reason they signed!

EDIT 2: Cheers for the comments guys, I'm glad I've reassured some of you that the appointment is better than it may seem. Please take this post with a pinch of salt though, he might surprise us and change it up completely. He may also fail miserably, I'm not a mystic just a fan.

 

 

[Chewy]

13 minutes ago, SNSUN said:

We have the most important transfer window of our lives coming up too.

 

Football fans and perspective, hey?

 

[Norm]

I wish him well but gobsmacked at his appointment.  Hopefully he proves once again, I know sod all about football. 

[saintant]

10 minutes ago, OldNick said:

To be fair we only need a 10 goal a half season striker

Blimey,you just upped the ante -now you're wanting a 20 goal a season striker 🙂

[Puddings and Monkeys]

Saint Garrett (I think) kindly posted a summary of Selles’ mtg with the players as soon as Ralph had gone.  Would be really interesting if he’s able to do the same for Jones’ first mtg.

[Millbrook Saint]

3 minutes ago, Puddings and Monkeys said:

Saint Garrett (I think) kindly posted a summary of Selles’ mtg with the players as soon as Ralph had gone.  Would be really interesting if he’s able to do the same for Jones’ first mtg.

where?

[davefizzy14]

Really enjoyed his first interview on the OS. He comes across as very hard working and wants to deliver for the club. Liking the fact that his wife's side are all Saints fans too welcone onboard Nathan Jones, looking forward to seeing what you can do and hopefully you can push us up the table quickly

[Puddings and Monkeys]

15 minutes ago, Millbrook Saint said:

where?

Can’t remember- may have been on the big “Ralph’s gone - official” thread. 

[trousers]

41 minutes ago, Puddings and Monkeys said:

Saint Garrett (I think) kindly posted a summary of Selles’ mtg with the players as soon as Ralph had gone.  Would be really interesting if he’s able to do the same for Jones’ first mtg.

 

38 minutes ago, Millbrook Saint said:

where?

 

22 minutes ago, Puddings and Monkeys said:

Can’t remember- may have been on the big “Ralph’s gone - official” thread. 

 

  
https://www.saintsweb.co.uk/topic/57561-ralph-hasenhuttl-official-leaves-club/?do=findComment&comment=3093974

Edited 10 November, 2022 by trousers

[Fan The Flames]

1 hour ago, tajjuk said:

How is he 'under valued'? He was Championship manager of the year last year. Also according to him he has had multiple approaches from clubs (and youd have to presume they were bigger championship and lower PL clubs for them to be a step up) but he was wanting the right fit, presumably as he'd jumped into Stoke and then realised what a shambles they were from top to bottom (as evidenced by their continued struggles and changes of manager). 

What I find odd is people seemed to like the potential of Steve Cooper until he signed his new contract, who until this season had never managed in PL before and basically only had Championship experience. Plus despite is promotion last year, Nathan Jones was voted manager of the year ahead of Steve Cooper.

I was talking generally about data crunching and moneyball, not specifically about NJ. 

As I said it has value in finding players but does it when looking for a manager. Surley all the metrics that you need to assess a manager are visible to everyone.

The point being, putting faith in a decision of choosing a manager because the decision maker is good at finding players may be misplaced. 

[Greenridge]

While it's fair to say there have been several threads on the topic of the Manager, to have only 3 pages of comments against the official announcement sums up the generally underwhelming appointment.

[Whitey Grandad]

I'm underwhelmed but I feel a bit like the way I do after the 'wrong' Prime Minister gets elected. You just have to live through it, hope they don't mess up too badly and in three years or so another one might come along. 

[saintant]

7 minutes ago, Greenridge said:

While it's fair to say there have been several threads on the topic of the Manager, to have only 3 pages of comments against the official announcement sums up the generally underwhelming appointment.

Maybe better to judge him on results rather than how many pages he racks upon a fans forum.

[64saint]

1 hour ago, davefizzy14 said:

Really enjoyed his first interview on the OS. He comes across as very hard working and wants to deliver for the club. Liking the fact that his wife's side are all Saints fans too welcone onboard Nathan Jones, looking forward to seeing what you can do and hopefully you can push us up the table quickly

Apparently his wife's great grandfather played for Saints.  Don't suppose he's still around and available to play up front 🤔  

Anyway it's certainly one for the historians to look up.

Edited 10 November, 2022 by 64saint

[JRM]

1 hour ago, davefizzy14 said:

Really enjoyed his first interview on the OS. He comes across as very hard working and wants to deliver for the club. Liking the fact that his wife's side are all Saints fans too welcone onboard Nathan Jones, looking forward to seeing what you can do and hopefully you can push us up the table quickly

Same, I like him, plus as his in laws are Saints fans they must count themselves as proper ITK now, any of them post on here? 

[JRM]

11 minutes ago, 64saint said:

Apparently his wife's great grandfather played for Saints.  Don't suppose he's still around and available to play up front 🤔  

Anyway it's certainly one for the historians to look up.

https://www.saintsplayers.co.uk/player/george-woodford/

[Hatch]

Looking at the positives.   It could have been Southgate 

[HarvSFC]

At least he's got two of his own men coming with him. As said earlier in the week, Mick Harford, who is very valued at Luton and is in temporary charge now is pretty much Mr. Luton, so he would been impossible to get. Hopefully, we've got two good, young and up and coming coaches in Cohen and Sheehan, who I remember from our League One days. The problem with Hasenhuttl was that after Rohl left he didn't really have another individual of a traditional coaching team with him and that was clear on the touchlines.

https://www.lutontown.co.uk/news/2022/november/nathan-farewell/

Gave a nice farewell to the Luton fans also. Far better than anything we've ever got from our leavers.

Time to get behind him and the team. I was apprehensive regarding the Pochettino appointment and that was a success, so hopefully this is another case of me being proved wrong and those that get paid the big money to find the individuals have identified something that we're missing.

[Midfield_General]

2 hours ago, igsey said:

• He'll sell your wingers if they can't prove to be adaptable to his full back-based systems

 

OK I'm starting to warm to him now

[Brussels Saint]

Voted unsure in the poll as never heard of him before linked. Certainly lacks the feel good impact of a big name.

Perhaps interestingly it actually gives me more confidence that we paid a big sum for him and his team (4m or so)

This is no penny pinching exercise that’s clear, but a planned appointment of the man they wanted.

No discussion and interviewing of different candidates, they had a name at the top of the list and it was done in less than a week. That’s hopeful. 
 

When SR came in we were all generally impressed……no doubt this is the first big test………

Welcome NJ …. Everyone was a who? once.

[Convict Colony]

1 hour ago, Greenridge said:

While it's fair to say there have been several threads on the topic of the Manager, to have only 3 pages of comments against the official announcement sums up the generally underwhelming appointment.

dont think its the appointment its the fact it will be hard to get excited and for him to have an impact while we couldn't score in a brothel.

[BERMUDASAINT]

2 hours ago, igsey said:

A kind Luton Town fan on Reddit wrote an overview of NJ's time at Luton and what we can expect. I have to say, it's made me feel much more optimistic:

 

Great post, thank you for the detailed description of his coaching experience with Luton. You have elaborated on details of NJ that our owners must have seen and been tracking.

This just reaffirmed that his appointment was a calculated decision on the right kind of principals we are looking for.

[CB Fry]

As I said right from the off, this is fantastic appointment and Nathan is going to do brilliantly at Saints.

[SaintZamboni]

Saw saw a stat today saying that his Luton side have the most pressure in the opposition half in the league and also the lowest xg of chances for the opposition. If he can get us there we’ll be in a better place than we have been. 
Cautiously optimistic. 

[LuckyNumber7]

Personally couldn't give a flying one that he's not a 'name', how often do we see the bigger names flop in management. Jones has been quietly doing a really good job in the lower leagues and has earned this shot at the PL. Unlike some better known managers who might only come here for the paycheck he seems very driven to succeed and make a name for himself. It's time all Saints fans unite behind him and the club and start hopefully looking towards brighter days, it feels a long time since we had anything to be positive about.

Welcome to Southampton Nathan and good luck, you'll need it!

[Saint Billy]

3 hours ago, Monkeyboy said:

Does this mean a return of the nuns? 🙏

Nuns are always welcome now we have God on our side. 

[aintforever]

I get the feeling it’s either going to be a genius appointment or a spectacular failure, if I had to put my house on it I would say the later but what do I know, I thought Poch would be a disaster.