That Nigel Adkins ' job is seen as under threat is a rather strange state of affairs.

After all, this is the man who has won two back-to-back promotions, making the Saints team free scoring along the way.

Yet still, doubts remain that he is long for St. Mary's.

Cast your mind back two years to the sacking - sorry, mutual decision to part ways - of Alan Pardew , and you'll remember that there had been rumours flying around for a few months that his days were numbered.

It seemed ridiculous, bearing in mind he had won a Wembley final, rebuilt the team from scratch, wasn't that far from a play-off spot and we were only three league games into the season.

Look at the the time that lined up for his first match and compare it to the one that won at Wembley and you'll see how much he transformed the club.

As it turns out, Pardew's leaving worked out well for both parties. He got a top job with Newcastle and Adkins has done fantastically since taking over.

However, one of the contributing factors that first got us into the mess we've suffered over the last seven years was the club's inability to keep hold of a manager following Strachan's departure in 2004.

With the much vaunted aim to emulate Barcelona, it would be madness to ditch a young enthusiastic manager with a great track record already just because of a few loses in a row.

How can a club be stable if the man in the most important job is constantly under threat of being fired?

Patience and hard work are the keys to creating long lasting success. Cliched as it may be, it's as true in football as it is running a sandwich shop. Knee jerk decisions run counter to long term visions.

Against Villa, Adkins oversaw Saints recording their first Premier League win since that epic 4-3 against Norwich in 2005, and in turn gave himself a well-earned respite from the pressure that he is apparently under from above.

I've only heard a miniscule number of Saints fans complain about Adkins' performances in the Premier League (substitutions against Manchester United aside) so it seems ludicrous that he is the favourite to lose his job first, and has been since July.

The manner of the weekend's win will certainly have helped. Since the start of the season, Saints have shown they have the firepower to compete in this division, only to be undone by defensive lapses.

Those lapses were cruelly exposed by the three best teams in the Premier League last season, but against Aston Villa, Adkins' men put their collective foot down and showed the rest of the Premier League that they do have what it takes to win.

The supporters showed what they think of the manager on Saturday - the chanting made it clear in no uncertain terms that the fanbase is fully behind the manager.

Adkins has done well for Southampton . Lets hope Southampton do right by him.