One manager stands out as the key to Southampton’s instant promotion | OneFootball

Southampton must find the right replacement for Ivan Juric as they look to make a quick return to the Premier League. The Saints have endured a miserable campaign back in the top-flight, suffering relegation while sitting on just 11 points at the time of writing.

The decision to turn to Juric after sacking Russell Martin in December proved to be the wrong one. The Croat oversaw just one win and 12 defeats in his 14 Premier League games in charge before he was also dismissed once the club's relegation was confirmed.

Several managers have been linked with the vacancy, and it's a job that appeals given the club's ambitions. Tyler Dibling will be departing this summer, and the English starlet's value is thought to be around £100m. There should also be money to spend this summer through parachute payments, which will reportedly amount to around £49m, per The Daily Echo.

Who has been linked with the Southampton job?

The Saints' higher-ups have a clear strategy regarding who takes over from Juric at St Mary's. Most of the candidates reportedly on their shortlist have experience coaching in the second-tier of English football, while one has performed well in one of Europe's top five leagues.

Danny Rohl

Sheffield Wednesday's Danny Rohl | Stephen Pond/GettyImages

There aren't many more suitable managers for the role than Danny Rohl whose previous spell working as assistant manager to Ralph Hasenhuttl puts him in good stead. He has worked wonders at Sheffied Wednesday, guiding the Owls out of the looming threat of relegation and ensuring they sit comfortably mid table.

Rohl, 36, is expected to leave Wednesday this summer but it's not certain he'll return to St Mary's. He's reportedly "interested" in replacing Ruud van Nistelrooy at Leicester City if the Foxes part ways with the under-fire Dutchman.

Liam Rosenior

Strasbourg boss Liam Rosenior | FREDERICK FLORIN/GettyImages

Liam Rosenior has been a massive hit with French outfit Strasbourg where he's propelled Le RCS into a battle for European qualification. He's overseen 15 wins in 31 games as of the time of writing including a 1-0 win over Roberto De Zerbi's Marseille.

The 40-year-old knows the Championship well from his time in charge at Hull City where he was contentiously dismissed despite a seventh-placed finish. He's been on the Saints' radar since March and a return to England could be on the cards.

Will Still

Lens' young English-born coach Will Still | FRED TANNEAU/GettyImages

It feels inevitable that Will Still will arrive in England in the near future, and he'll bring experience and an impressive resume from Ligue 1 with him. Lens' president called him "superb" and he's grown with each passing year in France.

Still started his coaching career with Preston North End's youth academy before heading abroad in 2012. The 32-year-old has since had spells in charge of Reims and Lens and Southampton are thought to have held talks with him regarding their vacancy.

David Wagner

Norwich City's David Wagner | Stephen Pond/GettyImages

The oldest candidate to replace Juric is David Wagner, and the 53-year-old could be viewed as a safe pair of hands. He's also the most obtainable of the four having Norwich City last year after missing out on promotion.The German can boast Premier League experience after he steered Huddersfield to the top-flight in 2017. He has shades of Hassenhuttl in his coaching methods and could be a decent fit to work alongside the club's new sporting director Johannes Spors.

Danny Rohl is the ideal solution for a Saints promotion fight

Southampton must do all they can to win the race for the in-demand Rohl, as he has all the tools to deliver promotion next season. His time spent working, not only with Hasenhuttl, but also Hansi Flick at Bayern Munich, gives him an enormous amount of knowledge for a demanding job.

Rohl has implemented a counter-attacking system at Wednesday that has proved effective and could suit the Saints' current squad. He worked with Spors at RB Leipzig who are also eyeing him to replace Marco Rose.

The German speaks well and has a personality that would connect with the passionate fanbase. He has turned to youth at Hillsborough, handing opportunities to the likes of Pierce Charles, 19, and Gabriel Otegbayo, 20. One would imagine he'd help Taylor Harwood-Bellis, 23, and Gabriel Otegbayo, 20, push on in their development at St Mary's.