Southampton have been one of a number of teams with a managerial vacancy in the Championship during the international break, alongside Norwich, Middlesbrough, and Swansea.
Boro are set to appoint Kim Hellberg from Hammarby and Vitor Matos is in talks to take over at Swansea, but it is Norwich who have made the most eyebrow-raising appointment.
The Canaries have hired Belgian coach Philippe Clement, who has won four domestic cups in Belgium and Scotland and four Belgian top-flight titles in his career, per Transfermarkt, working for Club Brugge, Genk, Monaco, and Rangers.
Norwich are 23rd in the Championship table, with half as many points as Southampton, yet they have attracted a head coach who has won 170 of his 287 league games as a manager, averaging 2.00 points per game, per Transfermarkt.
The latest on Southampton's managerial search
According to Daily Echo reporter Alfie House, as relayed by SaintsExtra, Southampton are set to hand interim head coach Tonda Eckert the next three Championship matches before further assessing the situation.
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The Saints play Charlton, Leicester City, and Millwall in those three games, after Eckert beat QPR 2-1 and Sheffield Wednesday 3-1 in his first two matches in the dugout.
House’s update adds that Southampton have spoken with managerial targets and that they do not have a clear standout candidate at this moment in time, which is why Eckert will be given the next three games to stake his claim for the permanent job.
Instead of appointing the interim on a permanent basis, Sport Republic could hire their answer to Norwich’s ambitious Clement swoop by bringing reported target Brendan Rodgers to St. Mary’s.
Why Southampton should appoint Brendan Rodgers
If the Canaries are able to attract a manager like Clement, who has won eight trophies and managed some big European clubs, whilst second from bottom in the Championship, Southampton should make a statement of their own with a move for the former Celtic boss.
Described as “world-class” by Gabby Agbonlahor, like the new Norwich manager, Rodgers would come in with an incredible career behind him and a history of winning games and trophies on a consistent basis. In fact, he won the 2023/24 Scottish Premiership title with Celtic ahead of Clement’s Rangers side.
The Northern Irish boss, who was hailed as a “pillar of strength” by Hoops captain Callum McGregor, is an incredibly experienced tactician who has been there and done it in England and Scotland.
League games managed
597
287
League games won
322
170
League games drawn
122
63
League games lost
153
54
Points per league game
1.82
2.00
Trophies won
13
8
League titles won
4
4
As you can see in the table above, Rodgers is even more experienced than Clement and has won five more trophies in his career, with 11 of those coming at Celtic, and the other two with Leicester.
The Saints target also has experience in getting out of the Championship. He won the play-offs in the 2010/11 campaign after a third-placed finish in the second tier with Swansea, which shows that he also has experience for what Southampton need this season.
Therefore, Rodgers could be a brilliant appointment for the club if they can convince him to make the drop down to the Championship, which is what Norwich were able to do with Clement.
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ByDan Emery