Let us say this, firstly - It takes serious guts to come into a new club and make decisions such as replacing players. In doing this, you are taking the bold stance of 'I know this club better than who was here before.'
Fortunately for Will Still, he was kinda given free roam to do that because... Yeah... The less said about Ivan Jurić, the better.
But Will Still had much more to do than righting Jurić's wrongs. Alongside this painstaking task, he had to deal with key players leaving the club, a natural part of being relegated that new managers must navigate.
Starting between the sticks, Aaron Ramsdale was understandable in jumping ship, given his aspirations of representing England at the upcoming World Cup. Nevertheless, this left Southampton in a sticky predicament.
Will Still is proven right about Gavin Bazunu
Will Still opted for the current Southampton goalkeeper, Gavin Bazunu, for the opening part of this season. However, he soon learned that Bazunu was not up to scratch.
Speaking about Bazunu, Still said: "I'm not pointing a finger at Gav, but it’s what we have seen and felt. We looked at some stats and backed that up."
"We have conceded too many goals, and on some of the goals we conceded, we just felt we could do a bit better. It’s just a general decision."
"It’s the same reason why we made all of the big decisions. We left quite a few more players than just Gavin out of the team today."
"We need to get it right, and that's what we're trying to do."
These comments came after the Middlesbrough game, where McCarthy made his first Championship start of the season. Last night, against Sheffield United, he made his second successive league start for the Saints. This only proves that he is top of the goalkeeper pecking order, replacing Bazunu.
For Will Still to essentially name-drop the goalkeeper position as one that needed strengthening is bold. Heck, we all know that goalkeepers receive their fair share of criticism, anyway.
However, we must give credit where credit is due. Will Still got this call spot on.
Southampton look one million times better with Alex McCarthy between the sticks. He is far more assured with the ball at his feet, and he commands his defensive line more authoritatively than Bazunu does.
Look, Bazunu is sill young for a goalkeeper. He has his entire career ahead of him, and can learn from Will Still's choice.
Some time on the subs bench might do Bazunu the world of good. He should learn from the experience of Macca, and the fight back must be harder than the setback.