Southampton manager Will Still has reflected on the scale of the job at hand as he prepares for his first season in charge.
The 32-year-old became the youngest manager in the EFL when he was appointed in May. His arrival followed Southampton’s relegation from the Premier League, where they narrowly avoided an unwanted all-time record low points tally when they earned just one more point than Derby County’s 2007/08 total of 11. Despite that, they still remain one of the favourites to secure promotion next May.
Having struggled with managers last season, Still’s appointment is an exciting one. His work at French clubs Reims and Lens earned him global recognition and he had been heavily linked with a number of English clubs prior to his arrival on the south coast.
Still Opens Up On Restructuring Job
The Belgian-born Englishman will be hoping his experience at top flight clubs in France will help him make the transition to the Championship, widely regarded as one of the most competitive leagues in Europe. He’s not taking anything for granted though, and has opened up on the scale of the job which awaits him. Speaking after Saturday’s 2-1 friendly win over non-league Eastleigh, he said:
“I think there are a lot of things to learn.
“We’re going to have to work incredibly hard and we’re not going to walk over any opposition, you can see that it’s a team in the middle of a complete reconstruction.
“We’re restructuring the identity and style of play and after 10 to 11 days training we’ve seen a lot of positive things as well as things we have to work on.”
Southampton kick off their Championship campaign next month in one of the fixtures of the opening day when they take on Hollywood-backed Wrexham in front of the Sky cameras.
Writer’s View
The Southampton team that suffered relegation last season will go down as one of the worst in Premier League history, although that will have little bearing on what’s to come. This is a new era at St Mary’s and they will be keen to give their new manager time to implement his ideas on the squad. Still is perhaps the most highly rated young manager in European football right now and the Saints will feel they pulled off a major coup by securing his signature. Having signed a three-year deal, he is likely to be backed further in the transfer window in the coming weeks.
