The entity in Southampton firing line after Preston North End loss - It's not Will Still | OneFootball

Southampton fans angry at their poor start to the new season aren't only angry at the team and head coach; the owners are also in the line of fire.

Southampton's poor start to the new season is heading from bad to worse, but supporters unhappy with the start they've made aren't only aiming their ire at new head coach Will Still.

Not for the first time this season, Southampton supporters are furious.

A 2-0 home defeat against Preston North End left the Saints in 21st place in the Championship table, hovering just one place above the division's relegation places.

But while Saints fans are clearly unhappy with both the team and head coach Will Still, their ire doesn't end there, as can be demonstrated by the replies to club's official account upon confirmation of their latest defeat on the social media platform X.

"Rotten to the core" - Southampton fans take aim at Sport Republic over Will Still

Following their defeat at the hands of Preston, the Southampton official account on X had only one word to say: "Defeat."

There were, of course, plenty of fans who were happy to point the finger of blame at head coach Will Still, who was appointed into the position at the end of last season.

But Still was far from the only target of fan unhappiness, with many focusing on the shortcomings of Sport Republic, who've been the owners of the club since the start of 2022.

It is clear that there are fans who now see the issues that the club faces now as the endpoint of bad decision-making since they took ownership of the club.

And there are long-time fans of the club who cannot remember things at Southampton having been this bad before.

Another Saints fan was keen to raise the potential for issues at the club stemming far deeper than the manager, with serious questions asked over recruitment strategy, and whether there is enough fight being shown by those wearing the shirt.

One Saints also raised the downard trajectory that the club have been on since Sport Republic's arrival at St Mary's:

Southampton have declined since Sport Republic since they bought the club in 2022

There is certainly plenty of blame to be shared around at St Mary's at the moment, as Southampton's season heads from bad to worse.

The 2-0 home defeat against Preston was their third league defeat in a row and their fifth game in a row without a win.

There has been little for Saints fans to cheer all season. Since their 2-1 win against Wrexham on the opening weekend of the season, their only other league win came at the end of September, away to Sheffield United.

This is the crisis for the Saints. There had been considerable optimism that they could bounce back to the Premier League quickly this season, with the substantial financial advantage of parachute payments, the arrival of highly-rated young coach Will Still, and money spent on the team throughout the summer transfer window.

It is unsurprising that Sport Republic should also be finding themselves in the firing line. They took control of the club at the start of 2022, paying £100 million to take an 80% shareholding.

The Saints ended the 2021-22 season 15th in the Premier League, their tenth successive season in the top-flight following their double promotion from League One.

But since the end of that season, there has been a substantial downturn in the club's fortunes. Southampton were relegated at the end of the 2022-23 season in bottom place, and while they were promoted straight back through the play-offs the following season, the 2024-25 season turned out to be almost record-breakingly bad, with them finishing the season on just 12 points, 26 points from safety and with just two League wins all season.

It was the second time they'd finished 20th in the Premier League in three seasons.

There is no doubt that Still's position at the club is at serious risk, and the players may have questions to answer as well. But Southampton supporters understand that the decline of their club coincides with Sport Republic taking ownership of their club, and while they can't be forced out of St Mary's, it seems likely that things will continue like this until the club's fortunes start to improve again.