Leeds sacked Jesse Marsch after a year in the job with the club only above the relegation zone on goal difference; Southampton dismissed Nathan Jones on Sunday; the former Luton boss lost seven of his eight Premier League games in charge; Southampton are bottom, four points from safety
Wednesday 15 February 2023 14:58, UK
Jesse Marsch is on the verge of becoming the new Southampton manager a week after being sacked by Leeds.
Marsch left Leeds with the club only above the relegation zone on goal difference following a seven-game winless run in the league.
Marsch is keen on a return to management and is excited by the Southampton project, despite the club sitting bottom of the Premier League, four points from safety.
Saints dismissed Nathan Jones on Sunday with the former Luton boss having only taken over from Ralph Hasenhuttl in November, shortly before the league paused for the Qatar World Cup.
There are still elements of the deal to be ironed out, but should discussions end positively, it is thought Marsch could be in place before Southampton's trip to Chelsea this weekend.
Sky Sports News understands Marsch would be happy to sign a short-term deal, which also suits Southampton.
The Southampton board see Marsch as someone with positive energy that can be injected into the group. He brings recent Premier League experience and was also a big factor in Leeds avoiding the drop last season.
After Southampton play Chelsea, their next game is away at Leeds on Saturday February 25.
Sky Sports News chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol:
"I think a section of Leeds United supporters were never really convinced by Jesse Marsch. I know it's a cliche, but football is a results business and results haven't been good enough.
"Leeds are only out of the relegation zone on goal difference and the owners looked at the situation and felt as if they had to make a change.
"If you look at Jesse Marsch's record, he only won 11 of his 37 games as Leeds manager. He'd only won two of the last 17 and they had two very important games coming up against Manchester United. Things had to change.
"I know some people at Leeds supported Marsch, but there were some people at the top of the club who felt as if they had to bring someone else in or there was a real danger they could slide into the Championship and we all know how disastrous that is for a big Premier League club who have invested a lot of money in their squad to drop out of the top flight.
"In making this decision, the owners have obviously looked back at the investment they've made in this transfer window and in the summer and felt like they've had to make a change.
"What they have to do now is find that new manager very, very quickly.
"Unfortunately this is the time of year when owners get a bit twitchy, get a bit nervous, and start to think about making changes."
