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Southampton Owners Admit Mistakes Were Made
Wednesday, 31st May 2023 08:28

Sport Republic have been speaking to the media and have been surprisingly open and honest about were the failures of the season lie, now they ask the fans to have a little faith as they now try to put things right.

Sport Republic have been talking to various media outlets including The Times and they have been surprisingly candid about where they have gone wrong since taking over at St Mary's, here we look at what they have been saying.

The group who took over at St Mary's in January 2022 were the brainchild of Rasmus Ankersen who had been successful in Denmark with Midjytland and then England with Brentford and Henrik Kraft, who then brought in Dragan Solak as the financial backer.

The first conclusion that they have drawn is that they were not close enough to the club, when they arrived they stated that they had bought the club because they felt that much of the infra structure was already in place.

They might have been right, but they failed to see that some of those in charge had little real experience in the football industry and in my opinion did not make key appointments quickly enough.

Rasmus Ankersen had this to say to the Times.

“We were not close enough to understand what was really going on, that’s a major lesson for us. We acted like a parent who is sending money to their kid but not sending their love and attention,”

Solak added. “It never works and it didn’t work in our case as well. That’s why we are going to be close, to show support, to know what is going on, and knowing exactly what the club needs. We thought a huge amount of financial support would resolve a lot but it didn’t really.”

It has to be said that as they started to make key changes, there was a lot of things that there were beyond their control, the appointment of Joe Shields as head of recruitment looked to be working well with a series of good young signings, some more Premier League ready than others, but within weeks of his official arrival Shields was tapped up by Chelsea and his finger was off the pulse and we failed to sign key players in crucial positions, namely a striker and an experienced centre back.

Some would say that Shields experience was in youth and he had little of that in the game at the highest echelons, perhaps Chelsea fans would agree with that.

Sport Republic have since made some key appointments, including Jason Wilcox as Director of Football, although this was too little too late to save Saints from relegation.

But the one point they seemed keen to make was that there have also been changes within Sport Republic itself, they know they need to get hands on and Solak himself although initially a passive investor, is not taking an active role and is now Chairman of the group.

After the end of the season he has been keen to show that things are changing and to keep supporters informed of their plans.

“When we were relegated, I thought it was important we showed the people at the club and the supporters that we are going nowhere. If anything, we will be here more than before.”

“We knew we had great players, but they don’t show that in the games, some answers we got from the club were, ‘Don’t worry, it will be better."

“We would now like to know more about the life of the club and to be supportive to enable them to be the best possible. We were not failed by the people in the club, I failed them. I should have been closer to everything.” From now on he will be, as he puts it, “part of the family”.

Solak was brutally honest about the managerial changes at the club. Speaking about Ralph Hasenhuttl he had this to say:

“It became clear it wasn’t working and then there was the unique situation of the World Cup coming up and there was speculation and negativity, It wasn’t a foregone conclusion, we wanted him to be successful, why wouldn’t we?”

“I personally like the guy, we played golf together, but he lost the confidence in being able to turn things around.”

Rasmus Ankersen addressed the Nathan Jones disaster.

“When we appointed Nathan it was based on what we needed to improve to stay in the Premier League, we had stopped being aggressive, being on the front foot, we had problems with set pieces and Nathan had proven he had been able to instil that in a team that was in the Championship, which has now been promoted. It was not to do with his character, he’s a great guy, he’s hungry.”

“We have to admit we didn’t see him not being able to handle the media pressure at Premier League level,” Solak added. “If he could have been more calm and calculated after the games he would have stayed longer."

“Him being too honest and losing it a little bit in front of the cameras turned the fans against him. He definitely didn’t do what we wanted."

Next topic on the list was James Ward Prowse:

“Of course, we would love to keep him, he is Mr Southampton, he’s done amazing things. He will be in demand. If there is something that comes up that satisfies the club financially and satisfies James then out of respect we will have to have that conversation."

“It would be selfish to say, we have a contract, and not fair to him, If he can play Champions League football next season, then that would be great for him. We have to see who will approach us.”

But the big question that most fans want to know is what happens next, the more cynical in the fanbase are saying that Sport Republic aren't interested, some have even gone as far to say they don't want to be promoted .

The Times asks the question, Will they try to blitz the Championship or work their way organically through the challenges?

Solak jokes here saying

“We would like to do it organically and then blitz,”

“We are building an organisation that is fit for purpose and has all the capabilities to go straight back to the Premier League,”

Henrik Kraft adds.

“When you look at the infrastructure and the facilities then you can see this is a club that belongs in the Premier League. Our goal is unashamedly to win the Championship. We’re not doing a patch job, we’re doing it in the right way.”

The last question though is about the replacement for Ruben Selles and given the fact that most in the media are convinced that Swansea City's Russell Martin is already signed sealed and delivered they were very coy.

They admitted that Jason Wilcox the new Director of Football will hold the most weight in the appointment, but would not be drawn further.

In conclusion on this article, it is firstly good that they are out there and open about the whole situation, they have not passed the buck they have taken the blame and having done that they are now asking for the supporters to have faith in them to put things right.

It is good that they have recognised the failings of the season just ended, they are not trying to hide or point fingers, they are trying to move forward and find the solutions.

Personally I am heartened to see them do so, too many times in the past those in charge at the club have hidden behind a wall of silence, adopting the Royal Family mantra of don't complain, don't explain and that has created division.

In short they have held their hands up and said "We have got this wrong, but we are not running away, have some faith in us"

That is a big ask, there will as I say be many sceptics who will pick up on little things said and try to use it against them as happened to Martin Semmens with his comment about attending every game at a fans forum.

Perhaps Sport Republic will go from bad to worse, but we have to give them the chance to rectify the situation, if only because we have no other choice, like Solak's comment on Ralph Hasenhuttl, we should want them to be successful, why wouldn't we !

The fine words are now being spoken, now is the time for them to be backed up by fine action, the next few weeks are going to be crucial, there will be many outgoings and some incoming.

We will though have a decent transfer kitty after we have sold a number of players, some of whom delivered little over the past 8 months and will not be missed, we have the opportunity to clear the decks and reboot, we have enough problems to overcome without creating others.


Photo: Action Images



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wessexman added 08:40 - May 31
We can speculate and pontificate all we like. We'll all know where we are 10 to 12 games into next season. I dare say we'll have to hit the ground running.
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arfurdent added 08:55 - May 31
always jam tomorrow
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saint901 added 09:50 - May 31
It's a little worrying that they were prepared to "send money to the kids" (and so much money) without making sure it was well used. They seem to be engaging in a little financial whitewashing rather than taking on some of the blame.

The drop to the Championship is going to cause a lot of changes (and perhaps a halving of income) and will need more "kids money" to survive if the ambition is to bounce back in one season. Given the lesson learned that money is not the answer, they are placing a lot of faith on Wilcox.

The appointment of Solak as an active board member is one to please the investors who will no doubt be looking for some sort of return quickly now.

The comments about JWP are plain - he's for sale to any reasonable offer.

As said above, let's eee where we are 10 games into next season.
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MSB added 10:53 - May 31
It would be interesting to know if JWP himself wants to go
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saintmark1976 added 11:46 - May 31
So in broad brush terms the club’s owners have realised what many of us thought all along.

The club’s board as previously constituted didn’t have a clue and it’s cost us our Premiership status and the owners a shed load of money. Hence Semmens has been shown the door allowing him to spend more time with his family, rather than being put to the trouble of travelling to such far flung places as London on a Saturday afternoon during the winter.

Extremely rich people don’t like losing money and I expect our owners will now adopt a far more hands on approach going forward. The great pity is that it’s a whole season too late.
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SanMarco added 12:53 - May 31
I am going to choose to believe all this because doing so will give me some hope for next season. They have created a relegation narrative which is plausible enough on the surface. I am waiting for what happens now that they are 'hands-on'. I haven't written a cliche on here for positively days so here are two proverbs to finish:

"Fine words butter no parsnips" and "The proof of the pudding is in the eating". Over to you SR...
2

Stevebish added 13:21 - May 31
I think the whole thing shows a bit of class including the bit about Ward-Prowse it's how most of us feel, if he wants to stay in the Prem who can blame him.
But over all it gives me a bit more faith in the owners and hope it goes better in future.
3

landsdownsaint added 13:24 - May 31
The fact is they are hiring a manager who doesn’t know how too get us promoted , I think SR might be happy with us breeding defenders & midfielders that are potential Man City type players too sell on , I think we will be around top 10 next season & people applauding our passing game but no potency …. I hope I’m wrong
0

Crispinmumbles added 15:19 - May 31
A litany of apologies without actually apologising and accepting blame while constantly making excuses and insisting they were probably right really. The arrogance is astonishing.
0

kenchilds70 added 15:23 - May 31
As a lifelong supporter of Southampton FC I am dissapointed in our relegation, but the league positions dont lie. Big money suceeds at the top, whether we like it of not we are as rich as the players we nurture and sell. I do hope SR hammer the top 6 clubs if they want our nurtured players. Half the fee up front, and the rest by the end of the season. Like it or not we are a selling club and will yo yo between the divisions. Our ambitiions of PL susainability died with St Marcus,
0

YosemiteSaint added 16:41 - May 31
Talk is cheap, especially after the fact. SR had a full calendar year to set things right. The fact that they're just owning up to these things is cowardice. NJ was a nice guy to play golf with?! That comment pretty much sums up how out of touch SR are.
-1

MytchettSaint added 17:36 - May 31
I’m afraid I’m past the point of them asking me to have some faith in them. They’ve got every major decision hopelessly wrong in the past 12 months. I honestly think anyone of us could have done better.
I won’t be blindly putting my hand in my pocket just because they’ve gone mea culpa.
Actions this summer will speak louder than words and the rumoured new manager doesn’t make me think I’ll be seeing anything other than more of the same.
I’d rather stick my nose in a pencil sharpener than sign up for another season of that.
-1

nebrakada added 18:51 - May 31
How incredibly negative some "fans" are. Given the situation that the club/team is in - and whether or not all the blame should be attributed to SR, then I for one can only support the statements and their declared intent.

Of course we won't find out the results until we see the results, but for now, SR's attempt to mollify the disgruntlement by an admission of error and determination to get things right is as good as it could get.
7

underweststand added 09:08 - Jun 1
A fairly open interview session with some surprising responses. Clearly they trusted the (then) Saints management to make the right decisions about transfers. Most of "the kids" we signed last summer stepped out of " the glory zone " of top U18/U21 Prem. sides and dropped straight into the Premier League -with predictable results.
SR may have been a bit naive in.. " sending money to their kid" , but no-one can complain they weren't prepared to " put their money where their mouth was", and admitted they made mistakes (which is more than the former " Reed / Wilson duo " ever did when they squandered the VvD windfall on a string of misfits and foreign journeymen.
Now we have to " clean the stables" , and secure those who want to stay and identify those who will jump ship, and let them go.
We also need to get a coach/management team who can plan further ahead than the next league match, and get a squad capable of playing 46 games and getting promotion.
1

SaintPaulVW added 13:25 - Jun 1
I find it difficult to disagree with much of that.

Sometimes decisions seem right at the time but turn out to be wrong.

I have never believed the conspiracy theory that they wanted to take the club down to clear their debts. Better to stay in the Prem getting £100+ million a year than chance it on getting back onto the gravy train.

It seems like what they thought they were buying didn't turn out like they expected. We've all done that.

All I ask is they learn from these mistakes and keep funding the club to get it back up to where we all believe we belong and then stay there.

COYR



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