Next Southampton manager: Ex-West Ham boss emerges as surprise frontrunner after Sheffield Wednesday update.
West Ham’s Premier League rivals Southampton are on the hunt for a new manager.
Former West Ham United manager David Moyes has emerged as a frontrunner to replace Russell Martin at Southampton with a swift return to work a possibility for the ex-Everton and Manchester United boss.
Moyes is now the joint favourite to take over at St Mary’s Stadium, alongside Sheffield Wednesday boss Danny Rohl. West Brom manager Carlos Corberan and Kasper Hjulmand are reported to be among the other leading contenders. It emerged on Wednesday that Rohl had been pictured at the Owls’ training base with the Sheffield Star reporting that it is business as usual for the South Yorkshire club. Rohl is said to have a release clause in his Wednesday contract, having penned a fresh deal at Hillsborough back in the summer.
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Given that he is without a club, Moyes does not have the stumbling block of a release clause and has plenty of experience in the Premier League, unlike Rohl. The Scot left the London Stadium in the summer and was replaced by Julen Lopetegui but the Spaniard has had a difficult start to his Hammers career with mounting pressure from supporters after an uninspiring start to the campaign.
Moyes discusses potential return to management
Last month, Moyes revealed he was considering a return to management. He told the Stick to Football podcast: “I’m starting to think about it. For three months I’ve been great, because I wanted the time off. It doesn’t sound a lot to say you’ve had 60 games last year, but when you’re the manager and you’re coming back on a Thursday night from Belgium or France, you’re saying, ‘My goodness, I’ve got to get the team prepared – I’ve got to get all the work done’. There might be debriefs, then you’re trying to get them ready for a Premier League game. I found that amount of workload to be really difficult in the last three years, but it was a pleasure to be in that situation.”
When leaving West Ham, Moyes admitted he was keen to remain in management. He said: “There are a lot of things in football that can be done a lot better. But look, I’m really comfortable with the situation. I’m comfortable with the board, so at the moment everything’s fine. It’s football. It’s the right decision for both parties, for myself and the club and we’ll go our separate ways having had a really good four-and-a-half years. Do I want to stay in management? ‘Yes’ would be the answer to that.”
The major task facing next Southampton manager
Moyes would face a major upheaval to keep Southampton in the Premier League if he opted to move to the south coast. The club sit rock bottom of the top flight, four points behind Wolves in 19th and nine points adrift of Leicester City in 17th. Wolves sacked their manager Gary O’Neil over the weekend after back-to-back losses to West Ham and Ipswich Town.
