The Football Faithful
·21 December 2024
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Yahoo sportsThe Football Faithful
·21 December 2024
Ivan Juric has outlined what to expect from his Southampton side after he was officially unveiled as manager on Saturday.
The 49-year-old succeeds Russell Martin in the dugout with the club bottom of the Premier League table on five points having won one game out of 16.
The Saints travel to Craven Cottage to take on Fulham on Sunday, but Juric is unlikely to be on the sideline after signing an 18-month contract less than 24 hours before kickoff.
“I’m very pleased,” the Croatian said. “I think it’s a really big challenge but I’m very optimistic because I saw a team that can do better.
“It’s important to immediately be connected with the fans. I want an aggressive team and I think that fans of Southampton will like that.”
He added: “I want us to be more aggressive, to do much more pressing and we have to be quick to change mentality because this is my idea of football.”
Juric takes the reins at Southampton having never managed in the Premier League before. His previous seven jobs in senior football have all been in Italy, including stints at Genoa, Torino and AS Roma.