How many Southampton FC games Tonda Eckert will take charge of now revealed - it's been called a "dire situation" | OneFootball

The German is expected to remain as Saints' interim boss for a short-term period

Southampton FC's interim manager, Tonda Eckert, is expected to oversee the Saints' next three Championship fixtures as the club's managerial search continues.

The Saints parted company with their previous permanent boss, Will Still, on the evening of Sunday, November 2nd, with the 32-year-old's final game in charge being a 2-0 defeat to Preston North End the day previous, leaving the newly-relegated club sat 20th in the Championship after a run of two wins from their first 13 games.

After being placed into his current role, Eckert has since overseen back-to-back victories - the first in a regular season for Saints since April 2024 under Russell Martin - against Queens Park Rangers and Sheffield Wednesday, with the South Coast side subsequently rising up to 17th in the standings prior to the recent November international break.

Several names have been linked with the vacancy since the sacking of Still just short of three weeks ago, albeit under-fire ownership group, Sport Republic, are yet to reach a final decision as to who will land the permanent gig, and whether such a figure will come from inside the club or externally.

Unsurprisingly, the aforementioned successes in West London and St Mary's have given the likes of Dragan Solak and Johannes Spors plenty to ponder, and it has, in turn, increased the duration of Eckert's audition period after previous reports only strengthened the possibilities of the 32-year-old landing the job on a full-time basis.

As previously mentioned, there have been several names linked with the vacant post at St Mary's, before it was revealed that Eckert would at least lead Saints into the recent two-week fixture gap.

This came amid reports that sporting director, Spors, would move for a German-based head coach, albeit no names that fit such a bill have surfaced in the race to land the Saints gig.

It was reported last week by Alex Crook of talkSPORT that the hierarchy were expected to offer Eckert the full-time role after impressive victories and performances in successive outings against QPR and Sheffield Wednesday, during which five goals were scored.

In the latest update surrounding Eckert's future, local publication, the Daily Echo, have revealed that the German, who was only appointed as manager of Saints' Under-21s side in pre-season, will now oversee the club's upcoming three Championship fixtures, with next week representing the latest 'three-game week' in the schedule.

This sees Southampton face off against Charlton Athletic, Leicester City and Millwall, with the fixture against the Foxes a home clash sandwiched between two South London trips.

It has also been claimed that a standout candidate is yet to be identified despite an interview process, and that Eckert is said to be a strong contender, despite the fact Sport Republic have reportedly been made aware of the risks which would come alongside such a key decision.

It's fair to say that such news has split opinion amongst an already divided fanbase, with one supporter labelling the current situation as nothing short of a "joke."

Another made their stance clear, as they are clearly unhappy with Sport Republic's latest stance on the matter.

One frustrated Saints fan believes a permanent appointment of Eckert would highlight a clear lack of ambition.

However, there were some in the fanbase who weren't too disheartened by the fresh developments.

Another believes Eckert will have done enough to land the job if he was to keep up his winning record.