Tonda Eckert handed huge Southampton backing - it's 'almost guaranteed' | OneFootball

Tonda Eckert has been backed to take over as Southampton manager permanently

Tonda Eckert has been given extra backing to take over as Southampton manager permanently.

The Saints arrived back in the Championship this season hopeful of a return straight back up to the Premier League under new boss Will Still, who had impressed during his time in the French game.

However, just two victories in 13 league matches was severely underwhelming and enough for Still to be handed his marching orders shortly before the international break.

In came U21s manager Eckert to oversee proceedings whilst Southampton looked for a new coach and performances instantly began to improve at St. Mary’s.

Triumphs over Sheffield Wednesday and Queens Park Rangers before the November international break dragged the Saints away from any relegation threat, with it already rumoured that Eckert could be handed the job on a full-time basis.

It was then revealed that the German had three more matches to prove his worth and show why he should be appointed permanently.

Adrian Clarke believes that Southampton’s Tonda Eckert decision is almost a done deal

The best was yet to come, with Eckert’s side travelling to face Charlton Athletic in what was considered the 32-year-old’s toughest test thus far.

That didn’t appear to be the case when he guided the Saints to by far their most impressive performance of the season, dispatching Nathan Jones’ outfit 5-1.

Not only did this victory put Southampton within four points of the top six, but it also boosted Eckert’s growing reputation tremendously, giving the South Coast side even more reason to hand him the keys permanently.

This is certainly a train of thought that former Arsenal and EFL midfielder Adrian Clarke agrees with. When speaking on the What the EFL?! Podcast, Clarke discussed Eckert’s credentials and why he believes it is almost certain that he will become their next manager.

“I think it's almost guaranteed now, isn't it?” stated Clarke.

“He's won three on the trot, and this was swashbuckling with the capital S, wasn't it? I mean, talk about exciting.

“They weren’t really possession-heavy. It was all about counterattacking football and it was about desire and making runs.

Whenever a player had the ball, two or three others were making dynamic runs around them.

“A dream day for Eckert, who must be thinking, why haven't they called me? When are they going to call me? Because I'm ready to sign this deal.”

Tonda Eckert is within touching distance of the Southampton job

After three impressive performances, Eckert has just two more games in which to prove he is capable of leading the Saints forward permanently.

Southampton look like a completely different team to the one that operated under Still, which hands Eckert even more credit due to the fact that his predecessor had much more experience in the game.

With so much positive noise surrounding him, the 32-year-old must know that there is a great chance he will receive the job on a full-time basis, but he must remain focussed on the task at hand.

Securing results against Leicester City and Millwall must be the primary objective for the young German, allowing everything else to fall into place naturally as a result.