Swansea City evidence serves Southampton a managerial warning | OneFootball

Southampton must avoid making the same mistake as Swansea City amid Tonda Eckert speculation

Southampton should be wary of developments at Swansea City this week as they reportedly consider the permanent appointment of interim coach Tonda Eckert.

It has been reported by Sky Sports journalist Lyall Thomas that the 32-year-old is on the shortlist of potential options to replace Will Still on a permanent basis.

The German has impressed the Hampshire outfit’s board after overseeing two wins from his two games in charge since the decision to part ways with Still.

But the dismissal of Alan Sheehan at Swansea should serve as a warning to the Saints that they should not get swept up in the emotion of someone overseeing a string of wins.

A number of names have been linked with a move to St. Mary’s since Still’s sacking, but no clear front-runner has yet emerged.

While an appointment during the international break would be ideal, Southampton may have to wait a bit longer as they seek the ideal candidate, but they cannot let themselves throw those plans out the window if Eckert oversees more positive results in the coming weeks.

Alan Sheehan’s sacking is a warning to Southampton

Sheehan took over at Swansea last season following the dismissal of Luke Williams as manager, and he oversaw seven victories from 13 games to end the campaign, including a five-match winning streak.

These results earned him the permanent position in April, but just seven months later, and he is already set to be replaced as manager.

Swansea have won just four of their opening 15 games, and sit an underwhelming 18th in the table, so it’s come as no surprise that a change in head coach is being sought, despite many feeling Sheehan was the right fit after impressing in a shorter period last season.

But the Welsh outfit made the clear mistake of hiring someone who oversaw a couple of feel-good wins from a small sample size, and that decision has come back to bite them.

A summer has been wasted, and now the season looks like it could be a write-off unless Sheehan’s replacement can make a significant impact immediately.

Southampton would risk the same situation if they decide to stick with Eckert on a permanent basis.

Given his lack of experience as a coach, it’s difficult to justify keeping him on when he has no track record to back up the Saints’ ambition to compete for promotion to the Premier League.

Particularly as the team were struggling for results under Still, but the manner of their poor form suggested that results were going to come anyway, so there’s little evidence to suggest he’s doing something fresh that’s got the side firing again.

Southampton’s turnaround in form should surprise no one

Southampton have created the third-highest expected goals (xG) figure so far this season, with a total of 24.4 from 15 games (per stats from Fbref).

Only Coventry City (31.1) and Ipswich Town (24.9) rate higher, but the Saints have scored just 18 goals, compared to returns of 40 and 26.

Still’s side were very unlucky to be fighting near the relegation zone when the 33-year-old was sacked, and there were compelling arguments to be made that some patience with the young coach could lead to long-term gains.

But the Championship side made the decision to sack him and two wins followed, against QPR and a struggling Sheffield Wednesday.

From the small sample size of two games, Southampton have scored five goals from an xG of 2.5, which they will not maintain over a longer period, so correlation doesn’t necessarily equal causation in this instance.

Eckert has no managerial experience, and the Saints still have a squad capable of climbing the Championship table and fighting for a play-off place.

Given the number of strong options available on the market, including the likes of Brendan Rodgers (pictured above), Gary O’Neil and former Southampton boss Russell Martin, the club should be actively making use of the international break to bring one of these names in.

Entrusting the 32-year-old with the task of fighting for promotion would be a massive risk, and the Hampshire outfit risks falling into the same trap as Swansea and Sheehan if they’re not careful.