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Summary of non-mainstream articles: 15/06/2017 23:46:19

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| How Southampton’s Attack Would Line Up With This £8.50million Manchester City Striker In The Team – SoccerSoulsSOCCERSOULS |
| | Does Claude Puel’s sacking harm West Brom’s hopes of signing Southampton striker Jay Rodriguez?HEREISTHECITY |
| | Palace face competition from Southampton for managerial duoREADCRYSTALPALACE |
| | Southampton next manager odds: Crystal Palace-linked pair in strong contentionHEREISTHECITY |

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@HugoScheckter - Hugo Scheckter

That annoying moment when you try to generate @SouthamptonFC’s new 2017/8 kit but it’s been stolen… #SaintsFChttps://twitter.com/i/web/status/875336865028722688

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Sourced from Daily Star article

Frank de Boer and Mauricio Pellegrino among candidates to be next Southampton boss

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Mauricio Pellegrino and Frank de Boer have been linked with the Southampton job

Saints chiefs have identified the out-of-work pair as potential options to take charge at St Mary’s.

It is believed De Boer was initially under consideration last summer but there was a reluctance to appoint another Dutch coach after Ronald Koeman’s exit to Everton.

Pellegrino led Spanish strugglers Alaves to the Copa del Rey Final in May following spells with Valencia and in his native Argentina with Independiente and Estudiantes.

The 45-year-old - who has also been touted for the Crystal Palace job - played for Liverpool in 2005 before joining Rafael Benitez’s coaching staff at Anfield three years later.

Saints, who finally confirmed Puel’s axing on Wednesday night, will now work down their shortlist of candidates.

Top target Thomas Tuchel ruled himself out of the running as the ex-Borussia Dortmund boss only wants to lead a club in the Champions League.

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Sourced from Mirror.co.uk article

Southampton set to battle also managerless Palace for La Liga boss

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Southampton could be on collision course with Crystal Palace over Mauricio Pellegrino.

The Argentinian is one of the managers on the Saints’ radar following their sacking of Claude Puel on Wednesday night. But he has already held talks with Palace, setting up a potential tug-of-war between the managerless Premier League rivals.

Former Liverpool defender and later No2 Pellegrino is out of work after leaving Copa del Rey finalists Alaves, who he also led to ninth place in La Liga in what was their first top-flight season for a decade.

The fact appointing him wouldn’t require any compensation also makes him appeal to Southampton who have been assessing the credentials of a number of unattached managers.

Former Ajax and Inter Milan chief Frank de Boer, who was considered before Puel was appointed last summer is also in the frame .

However, Thomas Tuchel has ruled himself out of the running to take over at St Mary’s.

The ex-Borussia Dortmund boss was installed as the favourite following Puel’s dismissal but wants a return to football with a Champions League club.

Palace are weighing up whether to stick with a traditional British manager or go for a continental approach and appointment with their next manager.

Chairman Steve Parish held talks in with the club’s American investors last week to discuss which way to go after parting with Sam Allardyce last month.

While Pellegrino is in pole position if Palace go foreign, Burnley’s Sean Dyche is understood to be the preferred candidate it they look for an appointment more in the mould of Allardyce.

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Sourced from Daily Mail article

Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs keen on Southampton job

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Ryan Giggs is eager to kickstart his managerial career at Southampton as they begin the search to replace Claude Puel.

Sportsmail understands the Manchester United legend would relish the chance to take his first steps into full-time management on the south coast, given the club’s strong infrastructure.

Giggs, 43, has been linked with jobs, most notably at Swansea, since leaving Old Trafford last year. He won two and drew one of four Premier League games when he was in temporary charge of United after David Moyes’s dismissal in April 2014.

Former Borussia Dortmund boss Thomas Tuchel was initial favourite to succeed Puel but he wants to wait for a Champions League club. Frank de Boer and former Alaves boss Mauricio Pellegrino are also on the shortlist.

Puel was officially sacked on Wednesday following prolonged speculation but it is understood that there was a feeling within the club that he had been told last week his spell at St Mary’s was over after one season.

Puel was frustrated that he did not get an opportunity to build on an eighth-place finish and reaching the EFL Cup final.

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Summary of non-mainstream articles: 16/06/2017 06:47:23

| | Third time lucky?THEFACOM |
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| Virgil van Dijk likes a cryptic tweet from a Liverpool fan suggesting he’s not happy with his current situationTHICKACCENT |
| | Ryan Giggs 'keen on Southampton job’SPORTSMOLE |
| | Classy Claude’s Farewell Statement ! - Southampton NewsTHEUGLYINSIDE |

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Sourced from Daily Echo article

CHECKLIST: What do Saints want in a new manager?

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Saints face a massive decision as they aim to find the right successor for Claude Puel.

Much is often made of the club’s scouting and recruitment, and that they keep an up-to-date list of potential managers so they are ready to move quickly if they find themselves needing a new one.

Here, the Daily Echo’s chief sports writer, Adam Leitch, takes a look at some of the factors that Les Reed is likely to be considering as he prepares to play the role of king maker once again.

Saints see themselves as a club on the precipice of breaking through to join the big time, which means regular European football.

As a result they aren’t too keen on taking a punt on somebody with little experience.

You are unlikely to ever see Saints appoint some former top level player who wants to jump into management.

Instead, they want to see a career of progress, with at least one club but preferably more.

Also important is that experience of getting a club into Europe and then managing in European competition, as that is where Saints are aspiring to go.

Any manager also needs to be able to demonstrate they have handled top level players, which is an art all of its own these days, and seems particularly important for the club right now given some of the disharmony.

Probably the most difficult decision Saints face is whether to go ‘high profile’ or not.

There is a fair argument to be made that now is the right time to appoint a big name manager, just as Saints did when they hired Ronald Koeman.

There is a squad to calm down, an air of authority needed to keep players at the club, and a strong minded individual required to really force their own plans through.

However, it is something that is a real dilemma for the club. Indeed, you might suggest this is the biggest dilemma of their managerial hunt.

Saints had an issue with Koeman. He became too big to handle.

Saints like to work in much more of a business style than a traditional football style. But Koeman was hugely successful and popular with the fans, and so soon decided he wanted control and to do things on his terms.

If you go ‘high profile’ that is normally what you end up with sooner or later.

But to go for somebody without that profile, and potentially therefore that lack of authority, particularly with the players, would be a risky business right now given where the club find themselves.

Willingness to work in a structure Part of the problem of a ‘high profile’ manager is that they like to have things done in their own way.

Saints, however, want the manager to be part of a set structure within the club, which Claude Puel certainly was.

That willingness to accept you have Les Reed, Ross Wilson, whatever coaching staff are permanently there and so on will not fit lots of managers, and again many big names could be put off.

Saints need somebody not only to be willing to accept that initially, but also as time goes on, otherwise things can get fractious behind the scenes.

The much talked about ‘Southampton Way’ feels more than ever like a piece of marketing jargon rather than something tangible.

Saints need to restore faith in their methods with the supporters, and to an extent some of the players and staff as well.

The club do want to play attractive, passing and attacking football. That Puel’s side ended up being so dour and dull much of the time was ultimately his major undoing.

Any new manager will need to be able to convince that they have a plan not only to bring results but to do it in a certain way.

Playing the youngsters One of the club’s biggest boasts is developing young talent.

Part of the issue with Koeman was that there was a feeling from upon high at the club that he blocked the pipeline to the first team. He argued that was because he didn’t believe there were players good enough to make it.

Most managers coming in will want to splash out and bring in new faces.

As it stands right now, Saints are confident that they don’t really need too much more, just a few additional signings.

They want to see a new manager progress what the club already has, and field some of the youngsters and aid their development.

That will likely rule out some big name bosses who will take Koeman’s stance.

Firstly in terms of the transfer budget, which was discussed above. The new man will have to accept that there is not going to be cash splashed all over the place and work within that constraint.

Secondly in terms of hiring that manager.

Saints have paid had to pay a fair old whack to get rid of Puel, and so are unlikely to be wanting to splash large amounts of compensation on getting a manager who already has a job out of a club. Therefore, an out of work boss might make more sense if the right person is available.

One of the major criticisms of Puel was his inability to really communicate effectively.

A bit of that was the language barrier, but the most significant part was that it was just his personality. He was a quietly spoken and reserved chap, which is totally at odds with what the stereotype of the modern Premier League manager, who has to be a commanding personality.

Saints didn’t want Puel to use a translator having felt they got trapped by it under Mauricio Pochettino, but it didn’t go so well this time round either.

Saints will seriously consider how well a manager presents themselves to the media this time around.

In the same way Saints were disappointed that Pochettino and Koeman showed little loyalty to them, they didn’t show too much to Puel either. It’s just the modern game.

Saints are now seen as a stepping stone club, a gateway to the top teams if you like, but they would like to be a little more than that.

Therefore they will be hoping to try and attract somebody who doesn’t see it as a job just for a couple of years with a view to moving on the second they achieve any measure of success.

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Sourced from Daily Echo article

Saints ramp up manager search with De Boer and Pellegrino in frame

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Saints are set to dive headfirst into interviews for a successor to Claude Puel with Frank De Boer and Mauricio Pellegrino among those on their shortlist.

Les Reed and Ross Wilson will spearhead the recruitment drive following the decision to sack Puel after just one season in charge at St Mary’s.

The club have been doing their due diligence behind the scenes and investigating possible replacements for Puel for a while.

However, they could not make any move to try and speak to anybody until the final decision was taken on Puel.

Saints met with Puel on Wednesday to deliver the bad news and confirmed publically he was being axed with a statement a couple of hours later.

That has paved the way for Saints to ramp up their search with a number of candidates expected to be interviewed.

Thomas Tuchel, the early favourite with the bookmakers, is not amongst them. The former Borussia Dortmund boss was considered but the club felt he was not the right fit for them, meaning he didn’t make it from the long list of contenders to the current shortlist. It is also being reported that Tuchel did not want to manage Saints.

Though the shortlist is a closely guarded secret, initially at least, the Daily Echo understands that De Boer and Pellegrino are two of the leading candidates.

Saints did consider De Boer last summer, but were put off of going for another Dutch legend following the departure of Ronald Koeman.

De Boer was also understood to be wary of following in Koeman’s footsteps, but is believed to have indicated that it is a job he would have liked had it not been for that factor.

The former Ajax and Barcelona great, who was widely lauded for his spell in charge of Ajax, had a disastrously short stint in charge of Inter Milan, and was sacked in November.

However, given the problems at the Italian club his reputation remains largely intact.

Pellegrino led Alaves to the Copa del Rey final in his only campaign at the helm after spells in charge of Valencia, Independiente and Estudiantes. The former Argentina international coached under Rafael Benitez at Liverpool and Inter Milan.

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@SouthamptonFC - Southampton FC

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Four #SaintsFC players are set for @England duty today, as the #YoungLions face Sweden in their #U21Euro opener: http://sfcne.ws/U21EurosEng

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The Ugly Inside News for Southampton

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| Contenders Emerging For Saints Hot Seat | Now that the position is now officially vacant, the real contenders for the job are emerging out from a plethora of … 16-06-2017 |

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Summary of non-mainstream articles: 16/06/2017 09:48:53

| | Three outside bets to replace Claude Puel as Southampton managerFOOTBALLFANCAST |
| | Former Norwich City winger Nathan Redmond fired up for final chance of European glory with England Under-21sTHEPINKUN |
| | Report: Southampton interested in Mauricio Pellegrino while Ryan Giggs wants St Mary’s jobHEREISTHECITY |
| | Southampton sack Claude Puel as their manager | FutnSoccerFUTNSOCCER |

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@SouthamptonFC - Southampton FC

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@mattletiss7 on #SaintsFC’s players representing the #YoungLions at the #U21Euro:

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@adamleitchsport - Adam Leitch

For those asking about Tuchel, he was briefly considered but didn’t make the #saintsfc shortlist
http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/sport/saints/news/15350069.Tuchel_won_t_be_new_Saints_manager/

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Saints quartet to kick-start Euros campaign

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The Young Lions will take on Sweden in the Kielce City Stadium for their opening fixture of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship (17:00 BST).

Aidy Bothroyd’s men will then face ties against Slovakia and Poland in a bid to qualify from Group A and book their place in the tournament’s qualifying stages.

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Summary of non-mainstream articles: 16/06/2017 10:49:04

| | Each Premier League club’s best English U21 playerFOOTBALL365 |
| | Duo linked with Saints jobCLUBCALL |
| | Liverpool’s Transfer Saga: A Sign of Things To ComeANFIELDINDEX |

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Summary of non-mainstream articles: 16/06/2017 11:49:18

| | Contenders Emerging For Saints Hot Seat - Southampton NewsTHEUGLYINSIDE |
| | Liverpool target hints at a move away from his current club this summer | FutnSoccerFUTNSOCCER |

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Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs ‘wants Southampton manager’s job’

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Ryan Giggs wants to launch his managerial career at Southampton following the sacking of boss Claude Puel this week.

Giggs spent three years working as assistant to David Moyes and Louis van Gaal after his playing career ended, but stepped away from Manchester United when Jose Mourinho took charge last summer.

The Old Trafford legend took the reins briefly following the dismissal of Moyes in April 2014, guiding the team through the final four matches of the season, winning two, drawing one and losing the other.

And Giggs now sees this as the perfect opportunity to take his first steps as a manager in his own right, according to the Daily Mail.

Puel had been tipped for the chop this summer, despite guiding the Saints to eighth in Premier League and were losing finalists in the EFL Cup last season.

Former Borussia Dortmund boss Thomas Tuchel distanced himself from the role on Thursday, with Frank de Boer and Alaves boss Mauricio Pellegrino also in the frame for the job.

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