Southampton exodus gives Sport Republic canvas to prove doubters wrong

Reports on Monday linked academy director Matt Hale with an upcoming exit, while it was confirmed last Thursday that managing director Toby Steele will be stepping down at the end of the current season from the role he has held since 2016.

Steele’s exit follows news in recent months that director of football operations Matt Crocker is also on his way out of the club - set to join the United States Soccer Federation - while Joe Shields’ briefly-held position as head of recruitment also remains vacant.

Meanwhile, head of academy recruitment Dan Rice also appears to be headed for the exit door with a reported move to Everton on the cards.

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Saints have announced that Michael Fenn - part of the club for over 20 years - will be stepping up to chief financial officer to help replace Steele while former Manchester City academy manager Jason Wilcox will be joining in Crocker's stead, albeit with the slightly altered title of director of football.

But while the appointments already in progress will breed some version of stability, the club is facing one of the most dramatic periods of change and unknown in its recent history.

From top to bottom, big decisions are required and while Saints fans are right to be skeptical of Sport Republic’s ability to get these calls right - based on the track record of the last year - the ownership group have a major opportunity to reshape the club in their own image.

Of course, that image could be one of failure or success depending on the outcome of the decisions made.

Thus far, too many of Sport Republic’s decisions have gone horribly wrong. The decision to stick by manager Ralph Hasenhuttl in the summer looked somewhat foolish just a few months later when they chose to sack him ahead of the World Cup break.

Meanwhile the call to replace the Austrian with Nathan Jones - one of the most disastrous managerial appointments in Premier League history - will naturally cast doubt on all of Sport Republic's decision-making processes.

Sport Republic's decision to replace Ralph Hasenhuttl with Nathan Jones ended in disaster. (Image: Stuart Martin)

On the playing side, their failure to sign a striker in the summer stings to this day and the bizarre back-and-forth pursuit of Jesse Marsch before quickly turning to Ruben Selles is yet another confusing element of the way Sport Republic have handled key people and key decisions.

The Joe Shields saga - brought in from Man City before leaving weeks later - while not entirely the club’s fault is another example of a big decision that led to further chaos rather than calm.

From the outside looking in, too many of Sport Republic’s decision have failed on a human level, bringing in the wrong characters for the wrong positions at the wrong times.

With reports questioning the relationship he had with this group of players, it’s fair to ask if Hasenhuttl was the right person to lead this rebuild in the summer when he was chosen to stay on.

And there’s no question that while Nathan Jones might have deserved a chance on the biggest stage based on the impressive work he did at Luton, he was the wrong character for such a pressure situation, something that was evident as well during his time at Stoke.

Did Sport Republic assess Jones on a human level before bringing him in? Everything we were told about the hiring - from Jones as well as Rasmus Ankersen - suggested it was data-driven and that again should cast doubt on the how of these decisions.

The recruitment of playing staff has thrown up similar struggles with Saints toiling majorly to get the balance and character of this squad right. While mich of their recruitment of young players will lead to positive results at the very least in terms of financial gain, the recruitment of older professionals has been disastrous.

Whether it was due to the reliance on data or just bad luck, Sport Republic have failed to bring in the right people at all levels so far.

Mislav Orsic is a prime example of that. The Croatian's comically awful Saints move has seen him play just nine minutes in the Premier League since his January arrival and whether he just isn't good enough or whether his character is the issue, it's proven to be £8.5m thrown straight in the trash.

This Saints squad lost serious character in the summer when Sport Republic allowed Fraser Forster, Oriol Romeu, Nathan Redmond, Jack Stephens, and Jan Bednarek to depart and the players brought in have failed to match the intangible elements that cohort of experience had provided.

Oriol Romeu was allowed to depart Saints for Girona in the summer. (Image: Stuart Martin)

With Jones floundering and his defence notably lacking leaders, Bednarek was recalled in January and immediately thrust into a leadership role. That in itself provides enough evidence for Sport Republic's failure to get the personality of this squad right and Bednarek's return hasn't even been enough when reconciled against the backdrop of those who left.

With Saints bottom of the Premier League table and desperately struggling to stand tall in the biggest moments, the culture of the club at this time has to come into question. The staff exodus only adds to that.

Now though, Sport Republic have the chance to reshape that culture. 

Of course, supporters will feel justifiably skeptical that Sport Republic are capable of rebuilding correctly, particularly when there are so many areas to address.

The playing squad will no doubt go through something of an overhaul - in part enforced by likely relegation - but also due to the bloated nature of the group at hand.

Meanwhile, Saints will almost certainly be searching for a new permanent manager after Ruben Selles’s spell in charge comes to an end.

Sport Republic have thus far failed with all their managerial choices - whether it was keeping Hasenhuttl, replacing him with Jones, or sticking with Selles - so that must take priority in fans’ minds.

And to top it all off, they must decide the direction they wish to take the culture of the club from the very top.

Ankersen, who took credit for the Jones appointment as well as much of the January transfer business, is understandably the fall guy for many and their should be added pressure on his shoulders to get future decisions right.

There will be major pressure on Rasmus Ankersen (second right) to get future decisions right. (Image: Stuart Martin)

The imminent arrival of Wilcox is a major step in seemingly the right direction with the former City adminastrator respected in the game and with a deep understanding of the world of academy football - an area Saints will no doubt continue to try and exploit through their recruitment.

But with numerous other departures, Wilcox arrives to something of a baptism of fire. He won't be joining a settled club with settled roles, he'll be joining the opposite: a club in limbo, with the freedom to go in a number of different directions.

The hope is that Wilcox, Ankersen, and whoever else Sport Republic bring in will see that blank canvas as a positive, an opportunity. But the vision has to be right and the execution of that vision has to be far more successful than what we've seen thus far from the Saints ownership group.

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Fans will need to be proven. But the opportunity for Sport Republic to prove they are the right custodians of the club is there. With Saints barely holding onto their Premier League status in recent years and building towards relative nowhere, a refresh perhaps isn't the worst thing.

It comes at a time when the academy is producing a generation of exciting talent and with the club potentially handed the chance to rebuild without the direct concern of Premier League survival.

All that - in particular the lack of actual breakthroughs from the academy as well as potential imminent relegation - are negatives of the flip side of the coin. But they could also provide the necessary opportunity for a rebuild that has been many years approaching.

But are Sport Republic the right people for that rebuild? That's the question staring Saints fans in the face. One way or another, it will be answered in due course.