There is a growing disconnect at Southampton, and it is becoming harder to ignore, not between results and expectations but between what the Head Coach insists on seeing and what supporters can plainly see with their own eyes.
The defeat at the Riverside was not just another bad day. It was a confirmation. A 4-0 scoreline always flatters the winners, but Middlesbrough did not expose some freak weakness.
They pulled apart problems that have been obvious for weeks. The worrying part is not that Saints collapsed, but that they collapsed in ways everyone except Tonda Eckert seems to anticipate.
Southampton started brightly enough. They often do. There were half-chances, neat combinations, flashes of quality from Azaz and Fellows. And yet the structure underneath it all was brittle. Once Boro pressed properly, the cracks widened.
The back three struggled to move the ball quickly and cleanly enough. The wing-backs were caught between attacking ambition and defensive responsibility. When mistakes came, they came in clusters.
Some Southampton fans have already seen enough
This is where frustration with Eckert begins to harden. He keeps going back to three at the back, even when the evidence keeps shouting back at him.
Saints are not short of attacking players. In fact, it is the strongest area of the squad. Azaz, Armstrong, Scienza, Fellows – these are players who need space, numbers around them, and a platform that encourages risk rather than caution.
Instead, the system asks them to carry a side weighed down by defensive uncertainty. Ryan Manning was exposed again. Bazunu was left unprotected. The centre-backs, none of whom covered themselves in glory, were asked to defend wide spaces they are not comfortable defending. None of this is new.
Fans have been saying it for weeks. Loudly. Repeatedly. As the Saints Marching piece recently argued, supporters are not asking for a revolution. They are asking for one simple change. Four at the back. Balance. A shape that suits the players Southampton actually have, rather than the one Eckert seems determined to force into existence.
Talking about control and clean sheets is becoming ironic
The irony is that Eckert talks endlessly about control, clean sheets and suffering well. Yet his system produces chaos instead of structure. Playing three centre-backs does not automatically make you solid. Sometimes it just gives you three players sharing responsibility rather than owning it.
Of course, there are mitigating factors. Injuries. A big squad. A congested schedule. But those explanations only go so far when the same issues repeat themselves. Adaptation is part of coaching. Recognising when something is not working is not weakness; it is competence.
Right now, it feels like Southampton’s fans can see the problems more clearly than the man tasked with fixing them.
That is a dangerous place to be. If Eckert wants to save the season, he may need to stop insisting on being right and start listening to what is happening on the pitch. And perhaps, just perhaps, change to four at the back.