While Preston North End have finally gotten rid of Paul Heckingbottom, and Burnley are surely contemplating axing Nicky Hayen, Tonda Eckert is very secure in his Southampton dug-out.
Of course, there's the worry still in the air about Eckert's looming ban from the FA for his involvement in Spygate, with the German having to watch from the stands during whatever his touchline absence will entail, but every single Saints player he fields continues to buy into what the 33-year-old wants from them.
Cyle Larin has gone from being an unconvincing veteran on the books of Mallorca to a Championship goal machine, as he boasts an incredible seven goals from seven second-tier encounters so far this campaign.
Additionally, Finn Azaz never really fit in under Will Still, only to now be paramount to the way Eckert and Co. foray forward in matches, with a goal and two assists effortlessly collected in the 4-1 win against Bristol City.
Clearly, coming into training every day is a joy for this on-song Saints group at the moment, no matter how controversial their manager is to outsiders looking in, with Keven Schlotterbeck also instantly settling in, after moving to the South Coast late into the frantic transfer window from Augsburg.
Schlotterbeck has been an instant success
Schlotterbeck has hardly put a foot wrong since entering the first team mix.
The German colossus would officially relocate to English shores on the 27th of August and he was then thrown straight into the deep-end with his first start against the early league leaders, Millwall, on the 28th.
You wouldn't have known from his performance against the Lions that this was his first taste of what the second tier is like, as he valiantly won three aerial duels, leading to the Saints beating Alex Neil's men convincingly in a 5-1 victory.
He gets better every single time he lines up for the South Coast giants, arguably, with a goal even scored against Birmingham City, after lining up for his St. Mary's debut.
Last time out against Bristol City, he slipped under the radar, compared to the aforementioned Larin and Azaz stealing the limelight up top, but his timely intervention to clear a goalbound effort off the line would be key in a confident 4-1 win being secured.
One Saints fan, at the full-time whistle, would even note that he has been a "game changer" of a signing, and his addition was needed, with Taylor Harwood-Bellis departing for Aston Villa late into the window.
The dominant number 13 looks as if he was born to play in such a demanding and physically taxing league, with 5.8 duels won on average so far this season, from just five outings.
He is even at the very top of these rankings, despite only being launched into the challenging division a matter of weeks ago.
He tops these rankings already
Amazingly, Schlotterbeck is the highest rated centre-back in the entire Championship this season, as per FotMob.
This is the case despite Konstantinos Mavropanos scoring three goals already this campaign for West Ham, with FotMob rating the ex-Augsburg machine at a very high 7.56 on average, compared to Mavropanos' slightly lesser 7.41.
His nearest rival is Phil Neumann, who had to put in a back against the walls display for Birmingham City away at Derby County on the weekend, with eight clearances registered, and six tackles and duels won.
Despite this rock-solid showing in the Blues' 2-1 win at Pride Park, he comes up short in the rankings, just, with a 7.49 average rating.
Top five highest rated CBs this season (according to FotMob):
Player | Team | Average rating |
|---|---|---|
1. Keven Schlotterbeck | Southampton | 7.56 |
2. Phil Neumann | Birmingham | 7.49 |
3. Max Cleworth | Wrexham | 7.47 |
4. Konstantinos Mavropanos | West Ham | 7.41 |
5. Jimmy Dunne | QPR | 7.39 |
All in all, Schlotterbeck is sticking out as the full package for Eckert and Co. so far, and FotMob are clearly fans of the £3m titan, as well.
He could very much be crowned the club's overall player of the season if he keeps these imperious and polished performances coming.
Although, that end-of-season awards ceremony feels as if it will be a very hard one to call right now, as so many players are giving their all under the much-loved Eckert.
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