Southampton's owners can talk a good game but now we must see results

Since acquiring a majority shareholding of the club in January 2022, the relatively new investment firm have slowly stretched their influence over their asset.

Due to some circumstances of their own making and others out of their control, they had positioned themselves as chief decision-makers at Staplewood Campus.

Ankersen leading on January recruitment was not by design and the impression he gives is it is something he probably does not want to have to do again.

READ MORE: Every word Southampton owners said on relegation, club plans and more

Almost the entire Saints board’s reimagining, however, along with the restructuring of the scouting network to align more closely with Sport Republic, is clearly crafted.

They have now taken another step closer to the action – literally – with a new office overlooking the training pitch in Marchwood,  but the club does not need or want autocratic control.

It was important for Sport Republic to accept mistakes they had made which at least accelerated relegation, even if – as Dragan Solak insisted – it was coming due to prior poor investment.

They did accept responsibility and were reflective while remaining headstrong and defiant regarding their methods which led them to make the mistakes they did.

It is clear their principles have not changed or their confidence knocked back despite the ending of an 11-year Premier League stay – you probably do not want your bosses to fold under early pressure.

Club chairman Henrik Kraft did accept they will have to earn the trust of their supporters again, while he was visibly passionate and excited about positive Saints matters during our chat.

Sport Republic also pointed out that the club will, financially at least, probably be in a better position than most of their competition this season – they want to win the Championship.

With so much change at the club this summer it is important to get everything they want done as early as possible, including the appointment of manager Russell Martin.

That still drags on with the agreement on the compensation fee for his early release the sticking point. Some supporters have already voiced their concerns over Martin as Ruben Selles’s replacement.

They have pointed to Nathan Jones, who was also only proven as a Championship manager. Martin is yet to win promotion or even finish in the playoffs in the Championship for Swansea City.

But – similarly to a number of decisions Sport Republic will make – the parameters have moved. Saints are no longer a Premier League team, for the next 12 months at least.

Jones might have been the perfect appointment now, while he was anything but seven months ago. Martin knows the Championship and could be well-placed for a seamless transition.

Whether he can step up to the Premier League remains to be seen but if that becomes the challenge posed then this coming season or the next will have already been a success.

What we need to see from Sport Republic now is letting those they employ to run the club day-to-day do their jobs without interference.

Solak claimed he and his co-founders “really trust” those they have picked to lead this new Saints era and we must see that actioned.

Jason Wilcox has a big job on his hands and will work closely with Martin and head of recruitment Darren Mowbray with a view to supporting the first team’s objectives.

Ankersen, when asked about Wilcox, pointed to his experience building one of the best academies in the world as well as playing at the top level as an explanation for his appointment.

Ankersen also admitted mistakes in the balance of the playing squad created last season – not finding the right blend of experience and youth – and this acceptance must be key.

Sport Republic, together with Martin, Wilcox and Mowbray, need to find new leaders and knowledge they can put out onto the pitch – exacerbated if there is, as likely, a player exodus.

The Championship might be a step down from the Premier League and even preferable for many of the group’s talented young players' individual development, but it is not easy.

Current and former players alike agree on that statement. Although Kraft’s vision of the club DNA is centred around giving people a chance, the tried and tested must be called on too.

It is the community’s ordinary person affected by a club’s relegation, not players or executives, as exhibited by impending job losses at St Mary’s.

But winning enough football matches is the quickest way to restore prosperity and rebuild the link between club and supporter.

Sport Republic have grand ideas of a worldwide model and believe in them – even when others may label it naivety – while they hope to make a more sustainable business in the coming years.

However, Saints is the flagship in what will become a bigger portfolio of clubs. They say it will get “whatever attention it needs to be successful” this season.

The club’s best players are likely to leave this summer but stern negotiation can make the most of it and turn it into an opportunity to balance the books amid tighter FFP restrictions.

There is no room for knee-jerk decisions. Meticulous planning and consideration can avoid six-foot-seven-inch-sized mistakes like Paul Onuachu.

There must also be a balance of trust in the academy. While you cannot afford to rely on youngsters to get you out of the Championship, you have to show a pathway.

Coaches, players and representatives have harboured concerns over the route to the first team with the volume of signings from other academies fast-tracked to the senior squad.

Kraft explains the decision due to a lack of real promise in the top youth age group and signing the best youngsters pre-professional is always welcome, but our own must believe in their project.

Sport Republic owed it to supporters to come out and justify their decisions – after all, they have caused hurt across our city.

They have done so and now they call for faith – they will find supporters are behind them in much greater numbers if the decisions they have made to rectify it are as clever as they hope.