With Aston Villa getting their mitts on a three-time Europa League winner, with Wolves handing the reigns to a coach with Real Madrid, Porto, Sevilla and the Spanish national team adorning his CV, the impending appointment of Nathan Jones at Southampton may feel, at least to those not au fait with his work at Luton Town, slightly underwhelming.
But if Southampton have proven anything over the years, it’s that outside-of-the-box thinking can have rather eye-catching results. Some of the club’s most inspired decisions over the last decade, after all, have involved individuals their top-flight rivals may have been unwilling to take a punt on, preferring more proven, high-profile options.
Crystal Palace turned down Virgil van Dijk because he was, to quote former Eagles boss Neil Warnock, ‘too slow’ (The Mirror). Tino Livramento and Romeo Lavia, meanwhile, arrived from Chelsea and Manchester City having never played a single senior-game in England’s top flight.
Southampton, then, deserve the benefit of the doubt after identifying Jones – who has been permission to speak to the Saints – as their number one choice to replace Ralph Hasenhuttl on the banks of the Solent, instead of going down the tried-and-trusted route of a, say, Sean Dyche.
Luton Town boss Nathan Jones favourite for Southampton job
Jones, during two spells at Luton, has proven himself to be an excellent man-manager, and a superb developer of both young and established talent. Elijah Adebayo, Tom Lockyer and co have taken their games to hitherto unimaginable heights under the wide-eyed Welshmen, while the likes of Henri Lansbury saw fresh life breathed into their ailing careers at Kenilworth Road. Adebayo, plucked from fourth-tier Walsall, scored 17 times as Luton reached hte play-offs last season. And his rise mirrors that of his club as a whole.
Luton, after all, were 15th in League Two when they first hired Jones back in 2016. He could leave them, six years on, sitting pretty in the top half of the Championship. The underlying approach that has turned Luton into one of the Football League’s most upwardly-mobile, most-improved sides, meanwhile, aligns well with Southampton’s DNA.
“(Southampton’s) key cornerstones are high-intensity, fast movement with and without the ball, and a lot of focus on attacking quickly in transition,” EFL expert Ali Maxwell says on the Not The Top 20 podcast.
“Now, Nathan Jones’ teams certainly play with intensity, especially without the ball, and tend to attack quickly and directly as well. So I don’t think it’s a big removal from how Southampton play.
“The 4-2-2-2 (Southampton prefer) is not a million miles away really (from how Jones likes to play).”
Same software, different case
It will be interesting to see what formation or tactical shape Jones employs at Southampton. Luton secured successive promotions in 2018 and 2019 often utilising a fluid, attack-minded diamond midfield system. They also scored goals at a remarkable rate; 182 in two seasons.
Since the start of 2021/22, however, the Hatters have thrived in something more akin to a 3-4-2-1 or 3-4-1-2.
An average of 41 per cent possession places them third-bottom in the Championship (WhoScored), highlighting their preference for quick-fire counters rather than sustained ball control. They love to press high and force mistakes. What’s more, centre-half Tom Lockyer averages the second-highest number of clearances per game in the division, with Luton letting in just 19 goals in 19 games this term.
Jones’ defensive organisation would be a welcome addition at Southampton. Especially given that the Saints have spent much of the last two years haemorrhaging goals at an alarming rate.
Evolution, not revolution
Jones’ wing-backs attack with verve, and tend to hug the touchline. It’s not hard to imagine Livramento and Romain Perraud thriving in his system. Stuart Armstrong and Joe Aribo, meanwhile, could be integral in turning defence into attack with their ball-carrying ability, with James Ward-Prowse and Lavia providing the requisite energy and tenacity in behind, presuming Jones brings his 3-4-1-2 system with him to the South Coast.
It is worth pointing out, too, that Jones’ teams have tended to thrive with a physical targetman leading the line; an Adebayo, a Danny Hylton or a James Collins. The 6ft Sekou Mara, then, may prove important going forward. The summer signing from Bordeaux is the player in the Saints squad best suited a centre-forward role in Jones’ blueprint. Mara boasts physical strength, excellent off-the-ball-work and impressive link play.
Jones, meanwhile, has often utilised a lone striker with a more mobile option alongside him, a la Harry Cornick. This season, however, Luton have thrived in a more traditional front-two; Carlton Morris joining Adebayo up front.
And this is the crux of Nathan Jones. Those high-pressing principles remain, but the rest is interchangeable. The same software, in different cases.
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