Southampton have appointed their under-21 coach Tonda Eckert as manager with a contract taking him through to 2027, the Championship club announced on Friday.
The 32-year-old German has changed the team’s fortunes since taking over as interim coach last month following Will Still’s dismissal, guiding them to four wins in five matches.
“I think that we’ve had a great start and now it is up to us to continue,” said Eckert. “We go all in; there is no other way. I don’t shy away from saying that we want to play for promotion,” Eckert said.
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Boro stride clear in second with rout of Hull
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Middlesbrough ran riot at a wet and windy Hull to continue their perfect start to life under their new head coach, Kim Hellberg, and consolidate second spot in the Championship.
The miserable conditions, which led to a 15-minute delay to an 8pm kick-off, threatened to wreak havoc on this contest but Boro handled them considerably better as David Strelec put them ahead early on.
Alex Gilbert, Morgan Whittaker and Riley McGree all struck within a 12-minute window before half-time and although Joe Gelhardt pulled one back from the spot after the hour, the damage was done as Boro claimed a 4-1 win that puts them five points clear of third-placed Millwall ahead of the weekend.
Boro have won both fixtures since last month’s appointment of Hellberg, who was vindicated in giving Gilbert his first league start for the club since May 2024 as he scored and provided the assist for Whittaker.
Hull could have moved up to third with a win but their leaky defence – only crisis club Sheffield Wednesday have conceded more than the Tigers’ 34 goals this season – was their undoing. PA Media
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Southampton’s technical director, Johannes Spors, said Eckert’s “empathy for the playing group and the clarity with which he communicates his ideas have been central to the team’s improvement since he took charge”.
Eckert has never worked as a first-team manager but has been assistant manager at Barnsley and Genoa.
Southampton are 14th in the table with 24 points from 18 matches, five points off the playoff spots. They host eighth-placed Birmingham on Saturday.
