Southampton Appoint Nathan Jones as New Manager

Welshman Jones, 49, has left Championship side Luton Town to take the role and signed a three-and-a-half-year contract.

Hasenhuttl, who was in charge for nearly four years, was sacked on Monday after Sunday's 4-1 defeat by Newcastle.

"I'm really proud to be given this opportunity," said Jones.

"I know a lot about the club from back in the days of The Dell, to coming here to St Mary's, and it's a wonderful football club."

Jones watched from the stands as Saints beat Sheffield Wednesday on penalties in the Carabao Cup third round on Wednesday.

His first game in charge will be away at Liverpool on Saturday.

Hasenhuttl was dismissed after a run of one win in nine matches, with Southampton 18th in the Premier League.

Jones, who signed a five-year deal with the Hatters in January, ends his second spell at Luton with the club ninth in the Championship.

He will be joined at St Mary's by first-team coaches Chris Cohen and Alan Sheehan.

"A lot of my family are Southampton fans, which doesn't half help," Jones said.

"I wanted to manage in the Premier League, I've dreamt of that since I became a coach, but this club in particular - because of how it's run, because of the structure, and how they look deeper than just results - really appeals to me."

Jones led Luton to last season's playoffs, where Huddersfield Town beat them in the semi-finals.

The former Brighton and Yeovil player took the reins at Luton for his first full-time managerial position in January 2016 when they were struggling near the bottom of League Two.

He guided them to promotion in 2018 and the Hatters were second in League One in January 2019 when Jones left for an ill-fated spell in charge of Stoke City.

During his 11 months with Stoke, they won just six of 38 matches. Jones moved back to Kenilworth Road in May 2020, speaking of his "regret" at leaving before resurrecting his career during a successful second spell with Luton.