Southampton head coach Russell Martin says he will “continue to work and fight” until he is “told otherwise” after Sunday’s 5-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur.
Southampton supporters could be heard chanting for Martin to be sacked and an anti-Martin banner was visible in the home end at St Mary’s as the Premier League’s bottom side conceded four times in the opening 25 minutes.
Fans headed for the exit in significant numbers in the first half as Southampton suffered their 13th defeat from 16 top-flight matches this season, and Martin said he understood the supporters’ reaction.
“We have no choice but to work and fight,” Martin told TNT Sports. “It’s all I’ll I’ve done since I’ve been in this job and it’s all I’ll continue to do until I’m told otherwise.”
Asked if the booing affected him, Martin replied: “As a person, no. Because I understand it’s not personal. I don’t know them, they don’t know me. As a manager yeah of course it hurts me, it hurts the team, but I also understand it.”
Southampton trailed 1-0 after just 36 seconds on Sunday through James Maddison, and Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski added a second and third inside 14 minutes. Goals from Pape Matar Sarr and a second for Maddison gave Spurs a 5-0 advantage at the break.
Martin criticised his side’s “intensity and aggression” in the first half.
“I’m hurt at the first half,” he added. “We just don’t respond very well to setbacks as a group. It’s hurt us a lot this season. We have a chance to foul Djed Spence in the middle of the pitch and we don’t and then we’re 1-0 down and the response to that is incredibly poor.
“Probably the most disappointing thing is we have a plan. I’ve loved the week’s training, the players have been part of that process but we don’t carry it out with anywhere near the intensity or aggression, because we concede with the first action they have the ball. I didn’t recognise the team in the first half.”
Martin was appointed in June 2023 and led the club back to the Premier League at the first time of asking via the play-offs. However, they have won just one league game this season and are nine points adrift of safety.
Southampton return to action against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday.
GO DEEPER
The Briefing – Southampton 0 Tottenham 5: Postecoglou respite, Martin humiliation and ‘Levy out’ chants
(Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)
