Southampton Q&A: Is Juric the right manager to rebuild the team?
We have been putting your questions to BBC Radio Solent's Adam Blackmore. In part one Adam focuses on manager Ivan Juric and whether he is the man to lead Saints next season.William asked: Is Juric the right manager to rebuild the team next season when we're in the Championship? What does he need from the club if he is?Adam answered: I think in principle he is absolutely the right manager to take the club forward. I appreciate he has little experience of English football, but with any proven manager, it's about letting him do things his way and giving him the resources to be able to play the way he wants. In that regard, what he needs is to keep as many key players as he can in the summer, and for those that are sold to be replaced with top-end Championship talent. With parachute payments, Saints should again be a force in the Championship, and I think Juric's intense and focussed mentality could turn Saints into a ruthless team if he has the tools to do the job.Ivan asked: Juric would obviously have been aware of what he was getting himself into. Do you get the sense he's in it for the long haul at St Mary's, and is the man who will lead us into next season's promotion push? Have you picked up any frustration on his part around our transfer activity this January (or lack thereof), that may influence him and any decision to stay on beyond this summer?Adam answered: I think he and the club have every intention to give him his head and let him lead the club in the Championship. Saints will not gain anything by chopping and changing managers again, and in a short time he has shown he is a serious manager who can drive up a club's standards. I am quietly excited about the prospect of him leading Saints in the Championship. With regards his frustration, I think he will not show it because it gives him and players an excuse, and so far I do not think he likes that. He has rolled his sleeves up and got on with showing the players he is a manager who knows what he is doing, and he does not come out with excuses and makes players accountable. I really like that - he does not mollycoddle them!Listen to live commentary of every Saints game on BBC Radio Solent, and download and subscribe to Goin' Home With Adam and Jo on BBC Sounds to get all the post-match thoughts that matter
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