With Austrian manager Ralph Hasenhuttl arriving at Southampton with plenty of plaudits and comments that he was the Austrian Klopp, the gaffer had already made it clear that he wanted to make his own name for himself in the Premier League and he quickly won the St Mary’s Stadium faithful over as we saw improvements on the pitch, and successfully avoided relegation back to the Championship.
With his initial aim of survival reached, it’s very much a case of all eyes to next season and the type of summer rebuild he will give the first team, and fans already knew there would be a more youthful feel to things once again with our gaffer being known for leaning on youngsters and helping them develop – and that is a more natural way for Southampton to operate as we’ve had good success with it in the past.
In his bumper interview with Sportbild over the weekend, he was asked whether he saw himself returning to Germany in th future, and he simply wasn’t looking past Southampton at the moment.
“I do not think about what is coming after Southampton. I have found a project here which fulfils me and I am not here with the intention of leaving again. I want to make a name for myself in this league.”
He added.
“You can’t rule out anything in football. But at the moment I don’t think I’ll work as a coach in Germany again. In England, managers are given a higher status. In addition, it is an incredibly interesting league. I am extremely satisfied with my job.”
Let’s hope when the inevitable tricky spells come along, the Board maintain faith rather than lurching as Hasenhuttl has shown he can possibly build a dynasty here given what we’ve seen so far, but that will need patience.