Southampton: Should the Saints have only given Hughes two years?

This past weekend Southampton finally announced that Mark Hughes had agreed to a three-year contract extension with the Saints.

This comes after the Welshman saved the south coast side from what was almost certain relegation, having been five points adrift of safety at one point. As a result, appointing Hughes as a manager on a long-term basis seemed fair, after he was only originally contracted until the summer.

Whilst appointing the 54-year-old seems fairly unambitious, it’s understandable for the board to go for a safer option after appointing two lesser known managers beforehand, with both failing in their own right.

But with Hughes’ appointment, have the board tied him down for too long? Or is three years a suitable length of time for the ex-Stoke City boss?

The concerns that many will have is if things go stale the Saints may be forced into yet another sacking, a costly mistake which would leave the Saints back where they are now.

With a two-year contract Hughes would know that if after 12 months things weren’t going his way, he’d only have another season to buck up his ideas or be rid of his duties. If things were going his way after two years, there’s no reason why he couldn’t be offered an extension, but for now it does pose a risk.

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Hughes’ sacking at Stoke City was seemingly something very overdue, as whilst he may of spent five years with the Potters they flirted with relegation for much of the second half of that tenure.

Southampton’s sacking of three coaches since returning to the Premier League in 2012 has gathered them a reputation of being impatient with managers who don’t provide instant success.

Therefore the club wouldn’t want a repeat of the same situation they’ve been in these last few years, as not renewing a manager’s contract is a lot less taboo than the merry-go-round of sackings that happen in the Premier League.

Only time will tell as to whether Hughes is a success on the south coast when given a whole season – his reputation isn’t what it once was and he’s now considered on par with the likes of Alan Pardew, David Moyes and Sam Allardyce.

However if things don’t go to plan and Hughes fails this coming season, the board may be in a tricky position with the Welshman still under contract for a further 24 months.