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Charlton Athletic manager Nathan Jones has issued a passionate defence of his disastrous spell in charge of Southampton in the Premier League.
Jones has rebuilt his reputation with Charlton since taking over at The Valley in February 2024, but his ill-fated stint at St Mary's will be remembered as one of the worst managerial reigns in top flight history.
Nathan Jones endured 95-day Southampton nightmare in the Premier League
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After being dismissed by Stoke City, Jones returned for a second spell at Luton in May 2020, and after saving the club from relegation to League One, he guided them to 12th and sixth-placed finishes in the Championship, respectively, over the next two seasons.
With the Hatters once again in play-off contention in the early stages of the 2022-23 season, Premier League side Southampton came calling for Jones in November 2022, and he made the decision to depart Kenilworth Road for St Mary's, where he replaced Ralph Hasenhuttl.
The Saints were 18th in the top flight at the time of Jones' arrival, but their plight worsened significantly under the Welshman as he won just one of his eight league games in charge, losing the other seven.
There were some positive moments during Jones' tenure as he led Southampton to the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup following a memorable 2-0 victory over Manchester City in the quarter-finals, but he was sacked after just 95 days at the helm in February 2023 with the club sitting bottom of the table, four points from safety.
Nathan Jones' record as Southampton manager
Games
Won
Drawn
Lost
Win percentage
Ruben Selles took charge of the Saints for the rest of the season after Jones' departure, but he was unable to prevent the club's relegation to the Championship as their 11-year stay in the Premier League came to an end.
Charlton Athletic manager Nathan Jones aims dig at former club Southampton
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It is fair to say that Jones' time at St Mary's is not fondly remembered by Southampton supporters, and it seems the feeling is mutual, with the 53-year-old admitting that it was a challenging period as he became the shortest-serving manager in the club's history.
However, Jones insisted that he was not the main reason for the Saints' problems during his spell on the South Coast, pointing out that they have also struggled in the Premier League under various other managers in recent years.
"I don’t know what Premier League fans think of me," Jones told The Standard.
"Listen, it was a difficult time. With the greatest respect, Southampton weren’t winning when I got there, didn’t win many when I was there, didn’t win many when I left.
John Eustace, Kim Hellberg, Tonda Eckert, Nuno Espirito Santo
John Eustace, Kim Hellberg, Tonda Eckert, Nuno Espirito Santo
"When they got back [to the Premier League], three managers didn’t win any games anyway. There’s an underlying common denominator there, and it’s not Nathan Jones."
Jones was out of work for almost a year after leaving Southampton before making the move to Charlton, and he kept the Addicks in League One in the 2023-24 campaign before overseeing their promotion to the Championship the following season after beating Leyton Orient in the play-off final at Wembley.
Charlton finished 19th in their first year back in the second tier last season, seven points clear of the relegation zone, and they currently sit ninth in the table after picking up 12 points from their opening eight games.
Nathan Jones may still regret leaving Luton Town for Southampton
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Of course, it is difficult for any manager to turn down the opportunity to manage in the Premier League, as well as the financial rewards that come with it, but Jones may still wish he had rejected the Southampton job.
Luton won promotion from the Championship just a few months after Jones' exit, so there is every chance he would have reached the top flight with the Hatters at some stage, whereas the Saints were already in relegation danger when he arrived, and it was always going to be a tough task to keep them up.
Jones is right that plenty of other Southampton managers have failed in the Premier League over the last few years, including the likes of Selles, Russell Martin and Ivan Juric, but his spell in charge was particularly catastrophic, and, unless he is able to win another promotion with Charlton, it is hard to see him managing among England's elite again.