The statement came just hours after Southampton’s fate was sealed. It contained all the usual platitudes: the inevitable ‘disappointment’ of relegation after a defeat to Fulham.
The call for ‘unity’. The nod to everyone’s ‘tireless’ work. The admission (or excuse?) that ‘the Premier League is the most competitive league in the world’. The vow to “learn” lessons. The promise of change and better days ahead.
It was co-signed by Southampton’s lead investor Dragan Solak, chairman Henrik Kraft and football director Rasmus Ankersen.
Crucially, however, there was no attempt to divide responsibility. Certainly no guilt from Sport Republic, who took over at St Mary’s in January 2022 when the club sat 14th. Just this: ‘We are deeply saddened and frustrated that our first season as a controlling shareholder of Southampton Football Club has ended in relegation.’ Not one for the resume, right?
As supporters come to terms with this terrible end to 11 years in the top flight, the search for scapegoats begins. Or signs that this was coming. How’s this to start? It comes from another statement by Ankersen. A conversation in Spain a few years ago, to be precise.
Director of football Rasmus Ankersen (food) called for unity following Southampton’s relegation on Saturday
The Saints were the first club to drop out of the Premier League after losing to Fulham
There was no admission of guilt from Sport Republic, who took over at St Mary’s in January, in a post-game letter
The Dane – who aided Brentford’s rise to the top flight – stands, almost shrugging, and the big screen behind him reads, “Principle #1: If it ain’t broke, consider breaking it.” Ah. Well, who can blame Saints fans for waking up this morning and thinking job done?
Surely no one in St Mary’s – not even occasional visitors like Rishi Sunak – could witness this meek surrender and avoid the conclusion that Southampton is a mess. Remember when their scouting and recruiting made them the envy of other teams? They are also an example today. A cautionary tale about how a few bad calls and a few unnecessary risks can quickly turn into disaster.
Ankersen was absent from the director’s box on Saturday. Of course, he shouldn’t take the sole blame for the debacle of the past 14 months. But that Principle #1 is all a bit of a shame, isn’t it? And it is under the watchful eye of Sport Republic that the seeds of Southampton’s relegation have been sown.
The rot began last summer when Saints resisted calls to fire Ralph Hasenhuttl and began a bold new recruiting policy. Their plan? To capture promise and potential, players who may be seen as too rough by other clubs. Ten new faces came in – none were over 25. Several senior players left. Just like during previous windows. Since 2020, Southampton lost Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Danny Ings, Oriol Romeu, Fraser Forster, Shane Long, Nathan Redmond, Jannik Vestergaard and Ryan Bertrand.
It left them with a team of extremes: a handful of senior pros, a slew of unproven talent, and not much in the middle. Over the course of the season, a feeling developed among several players that some youngsters were not ready for the demands of a Premier League scrap. On Saturday, only two of those 10 summer signings started the game.
Two of Ruben Selles’ XI came during a busy period in January, including £18.5 million striker Paul Onuachu. He arrived on the day of the deadline. He still hasn’t scored a goal. Kamaldeen Sulemana, another January recruit, has signed the club record and started one of their last five games.
To be fair to the new faces, they joined a ship that has been rocking in different directions for seasons. The waters on the south coast have been choppy since owners retained Hasenhuttl last summer – despite him being unpopular with many players – only to sack him in November.
Ankersen was one of the men who argued for the appointment of Nathan Jones last year
Manager Ruben Selles (centre) has behaved with class but is unlikely to be in charge next season
Ankersen then defended the appointment of Nathan Jones, who had never coached in the Premier League. That failed amid fan mutiny for his direct style of play and even more direct style of communication. The Welshman bowed his principles to a side that didn’t suit his style, but was subsequently dropped after 14 games and the reins handed to Selles. The young Spaniard had never managed a senior team before.
Selles has behaved with class and he has managed to bring over a few signs of life from this squad. But his appointment hardly showed any grand plans or a clear strategy.
They were at the bottom when Jones was fired and have remained there since March. Saints have flirted with relegation in recent seasons and it is said that some players have long feared that this would be the year they finally succumbed.
That sense of resignation spread and on Saturday goals from Carlos Vinicius and Aleksandar Mitrovic sealed their fate. The Southampton team is said to have suffered from division and a lack of discipline. Soon they will also begin to bleed. James Ward-Prowse, Romeo Lavia, Kyle Walker-Peters… the exodus can be brutal. So what’s principle #2: If it’s broken, consider fixing it?