Juric must now finally leave Southampton, who Martin said was a ‘leader’

Southampton supporters will be praying that the appointment of Ivan Juric proves inspired after the terrible end to Russell Martin’s reign at St. Mary’s.

The pitiful Saints are sitting at the bottom of the rock Premier League with only six points, having leaked 36 disastrous goals Along the way, however, there were plenty of positives to take from his goalless outing at Fulham in the last game of the division.

As Juric watched from the stands at Craven Cottage, his new side fought back well to get a share of the points, with a large part of the Saints defenders presumably impressing the Croatian.

Southampton’s standout defenders against Fulham

Interim Southampton manager Simon Rusk would have been delighted to have Aaron Ramsdale back at his disposal against the Cottagers, and the former Arsenal goalkeeper will have to be on his toes throughout to pick up the goal blank.

By the end of the 90 minutes, Ramsdale had done impressively five stopsall while still recovering from a broken finger, which no doubt helped the defenders in front of him feel more confident about grinding out a punt.

Still, the likes of Jan Bednarek and Nathan Wood also deserve credit as the game ended goalless as the two center backs on the day combined to win. ten duels in total, with Wood’s performance remarkably impressive considering that this was just his third outing in the highest category.

Juric will therefore believe he can pull a tune out of his new troops based on their brave display in west London, but there will also be a handful of players he will be less willing to give chances when they are introduced properly to the Saints. seat, which must include a suspended Jack Stephens.

The future of Jack Stephens under Juric

With his expiring contract Next summer, Stephens will be very worried about whether he will stay at St. Mary’s or not, with Wood and Co much more likely to make Juric’s first line-ups in defense than the ropey 30-year-old.

Worryingly, Stephens has managed to pick up two red cards this season in the top flight, but yes zero clean sheets next to his name as the Southampton captain looks out of his depth as he tries to re-acclimatise himself to the tough demands of the Premier League.

Unfortunately for the loyal Saints servant, Juric’s new ideas coming into the building, coupled with the impressive defensive performance at Fulham, could mean he leaves very soon, despite counting. 191 games for the club since joining in 2011.

Russell Martin was very fond of Stephens, labeling him a “leader” listed for their camp last summer when he signed a new contract at the club.

That said, Juric will know he needs to make the right decisions for his team in the here and now as the South Coast side try to somehow avoid relegation.

While his passing numbers will also have adapted to Martin’s regimented philosophy of always playing from the back, the new Southampton boss will want his defenders to be as imposing and determined as they were against Fulham throughout the remainder of the defiant campaign, with Stephens. winning 2.2 duels on average this season in the league doesn’t quite cut it.

It will be a sad severing of ties if the 30-year-old is let go next year, but if the likes of Wood, Bednarek and Harwood-Bellis continue to pick up the sheets, Stephens’ experienced boss hasn’t really done it. he already had a place to do his thing in the central defense spaces.

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