Southampton sack Mark Hughes after Saints' 10-match winless run

Southampton have parted company with manager Mark Hughes, the club have announced.

The Premier League strugglers announced on Monday that the 55-year-old Welshman had left the club after winning just one of their 14 matches so far this season.

“We would like to express our thanks to Mark and his staff for all of their efforts during their time at St Mary’s,” a statement read.

READ MORE: Southampton 2 Manchester United 2: Herrera completes comeback

READ MORE: Mark Hughes’ Premier League record in numbers after Southampton sack the Welshman

“The search for a new manager to take the club forward is already under way.

“First team assistant coach Kelvin Davis will lead the team for Wednesday’s Premier League game against Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley.”

Hughes took over at St Mary’s last March and guided them to Premier League survival and an FA Cup semi-final but was unable to inspire a better campaign this time around.

The Saints currently reside in the bottom three after 14 games, of which they have won only one and lost seven.

Hughes, who played for the club in the late 1990s, leaves the club following Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Manchester United.

Davies, who played over 300 times for the club, will lead them into a difficult encounter at Wembley on Wednesday as they face Tottenham in the Premier League.

Quique Sanchez Flores favourite?

With Hughes out the door, former Watford and Atletico Madrid manager Quique Sanchez Flores has been touted as the favourite with some bookies to replace him.

Gary Monk, Leonardo Jardim, David Moyes and Sam Allardyce are also in the frame, according to the bookies.

Betfair spokesperson Katie Baylis said: “With confirmation Hughes has been given the boot from Southampton, attention turns to who will take over.

“We’ve seen a flood of bets on Spaniard Quique Sanchez Flores over the weekend and his odds have gone from 14/1 before the weekend, to 2/1 yesterday with the former Watford manager now backed into odds-on favourite at 8/11 as of this morning.

“Ralph Hasenhuttl is the 5/2 second favourite with Paulo Sousa at 10/1, but at the moment it looks like Flores could be heading back to England.”

Next Southampton Manager

14/1 : Garry Monk

20/1: Leonardo Jardim

20/1: Sam Allardyce

60/1: Frank Lampard

66/1: Marian Pahars

90/1: Alan Curbishley

90/1: Harry Redknapp

Managerial replacement profiles

Paulo Sousa

The Portuguese has been widely mooted as a possible replacement over recent weeks and is available having left Tianjin Quanjian in the summer. Well known to English fans after spells with QPR, Swansea and Leicester, the 48-year-old has coached – and played – all over the world and has a silky style which may cheer Saints fans.

Sam Allardyce

The go-to rescue act when clubs are in crisis, this would appear, on the face of it, the perfect job at the perfect time of the season for the former England manager. He has successfully saved Sunderland and Crystal Palace in recent seasons, while stabilising Everton last year before criticism of the team’s style kicked in. Now 64, would he fancy another mission?

Slavisa Jokanovic

Sacked by Fulham last month after taking them into the Premier League, the Serb will still have many admirers and is now available, having done good work at Watford, Maccabi Tel Aviv and then at Craven Cottage. He would be an interesting choice, but would a return come too soon?

Leonardo Jardim

Sacked by Monaco earlier this season, Jardim represents another possible option for the Saints. Has lots of experience and has won titles in Portgual, Greece and France, most notably when beating Paris St Germain to the Ligue 1 title in 2017.

Garry Monk

A former Saints player, Monk is rebuilding his managerial reputation with some style at Birmingham after a short-lived spell at Middlesbrough. Did excellent work at Leeds in 2016/17 and was considered unlucky to lose his job at Swansea prior to that, having kept them in the Premier League. Two members of his coaching staff, Darryl Flahavan and James Beattie, are ex-Saints.

Reporting by PA.