If anything was symptomatic of Nathan Jones’s calamitous short-lived stint at Southampton – at 94 days, his managerial tenure was the shortest in the club’s history – it was the sight of Jan Bednarek bumbling backwards over the goal-line as Adama Traore’s shot pinballed between his legs and in to help condemn Jones to a seventh defeat in eight Premier League matches. It was a few seconds that speaks to the way Southampton have apparently regressed in the three months since boldly appointing Jones as Ralph Hasenhüttl’s successor.
In many ways, Bednarek’s inclusion in the starting lineup was also indicative of a muddled and miserable few months at St Mary’s. Bednarek was allowed to join Aston Villa on a season-long loan in September, with the Poland defender down the pecking order at Southampton. Bednarek, who irritated Southampton supporters by saying he had signed for a “bigger club”, wanted to play regularly before the World Cup but made just one league start before being recalled in January.
