Southampton are closing in on the appointment of Jesse Marsch as their new manager following positive talks with the former Leeds boss.
The Premier League’s bottom club sacked Nathan Jones last week and want his replacement installed before their next match against Chelsea on Saturday.
Marsch was himself sacked by Leeds earlier this month but now looks set to take over at St Mary’s.
Southampton are also said to have considered Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard.
But the American appeals to Southampton because there are similarities between his pressing style and the approach of their former manager Ralph Hasenhuttl.
Marsch got the better of Chelsea with a 3-0 win over the Blues at Elland Road back in August.
Leeds have produced confident displays against Manchester United in their back-to-back encounters since Marsch left the club - which earned criticism from Roy Keane.
The former midfielder said: “They’ve obviously responded well to the sacking last week and it’s a huge decision for Leeds to make and get somebody in. We talk about Leeds showing high energy but they didn’t show any of that last weekend but they reacted well in the week.
“We talk about energy, they didn’t have energy against [Nottingham] Forest. Their performance was a disgrace and that’s why they got their manager the sack.”
