By David Williams
Welshman Nathan Jones has been appointed as Southampton’s First Team Manager, after signing a multi-year deal with the Saints. Jones becomes the second Welsh manager currently working in the Premier League, with Steve Cooper currently at the helm at Nottingham Forest.
Jones has built himself a strong reputation in the Championship, with Luton enjoying some excellent times in recent years. And despite a difficult time at Stoke inbetween two excellent spells at Kenilworth Road, the Rhondda born coach has earned his way to a Premier League position, playing some excellent football along the way.
Southampton have appointed Nathan Jones to replace Ralph Hasenhuttl as the club’s new manager on a three-and-a-half-year contract.
Jones, who has left Luton to take charge of the Saints, agreed his deal with the Premier League club on Wednesday before watching their Carabao Cup penalty shootout victory over Sheffield Wednesday.
He will be joined by coaches Chris Cohen and Alan Sheehan, and it is understood a compensation package of around £2.5m will be paid to the Championship club.
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Jones faces a daunting first match in charge at home to Liverpool on Saturday (kick-off 3pm) in Southampton’s last fixture before the World Cup.
Jones said: “I’m really proud to be given this opportunity. I know a lot about the club from back in the days of The Dell, to coming here to St Mary’s, and it’s a wonderful football club.
“A lot of my family are Southampton fans, which doesn’t half help, and I feel really, really proud to be given the opportunity, and I’m really looking forward to getting started.
“Obviously, I wanted to manage in the Premier League, I’ve dreamt of that since I’ve become a coach or a manager, but this club in particular – because of how it’s run, because of the structure, because of how they look deeper than just results – really appeals to me.”
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Jones was in his second spell in charge of Luton, having led them to the Championship play-off semi-finals last season, where they lost to Huddersfield. He also guided the club to automatic promotion from League Two when he was first appointed.
Jones left the club in 2019 to go to Stoke, but, after an unsuccessful nine months in charge, he was sacked and returned to the Hatters in May the following year.
Luton are ninth in the Championship, two points adrift of the play-off places after 20 games.
Southampton sacked Hasenhuttl on Monday after nearly four years in charge at the club following their 4-1 defeat to Newcastle.
The Austrian was the Premier League’s fourth-longest serving manager, having taken over at St Mary’s in December 2018, but departed with the club inside the bottom three.
