Ivan Juric leaves Southampton - why he has the worst overall of any Premier League manager

Saints’ fate was sealed by Sunday’s 3-1 defeat at Tottenham - and they are now the only team to have been relegated with seven games left to play.

Croatian Juric, who was appointed as Russell Martin’s replacement on an 18-month deal in December, took just four points from his 14 top-flight games in charge.

The 49-year-old’s only league victory was a 2-1 success at fellow strugglers Ipswich on February 1. Southampton were the first team to be relegated from the Premier League with seven games of a campaign remaining and are still a point short of equalling Derby’s record low 11-point haul from 2007-08.

Juric paid tribute to Southampton’s “incredible” fan base following defeat at Spurs before news of his departure emerged on Monday morning.

Having suffered relegation in 2023, Saints secured promotion at the first time of asking by beating Leeds in the final of last season’s Sky Bet Championship play-off final at Wembley.

The south-coast club, who have since won just twice in the league, registered only five points from 16 games before sacking Martin in the wake of a humiliating 5-0 home defeat to Tottenham on December 15.

Saints’ other point this term came in a goalless draw at Fulham under caretaker boss Simon Rusk, a game former Genoa, Torino and Roma coach Juric watched from the stands.

Southampton have been linked with a swoop for 35-year-old Sheffield Wednesday boss Danny Rohl, who previously worked at the club under former manager Ralph Hasenhuttl.

With a further two points required to better Derby’s record low points tally, Saints’ miserable season continues on Saturday at home to high-flying Aston Villa. They will then face West Ham, Fulham, Leicester, Manchester City, Everton and Arsenal before dropping back into the second tier.

However, the fact that Juric did win a game means that he will not go down as statistically the worst Premier League manager ever, as most records are assessed on win percentage. The sad accolade of a 0 per cent win ratio belongs to two managers.

Paul Jewell of Derby, who took over during the 2007/8 season, and oversaw the Rams’ relegation with the (current) fewest points gained in a season.

Jewell - who managed at Wigan to great acclaim and elsewhere, was boss of Derby for 24 games that season but didn’t win a match, with only five draws to his name. These added to the six points that his predecessor Billy Davies had amassed - and Southampton, currently on 10 points, face taking Derby’s unwanted record.

But Terry Connor, who took over at Wolves in 2012, went one worse. He had 13 games in charge, and won none - and like Juric, gained only four points.

So perhaps, overall, we have to say that we have witnessed the worst of the managers in the Premier League era.