Ralph Hasenhuttl thanks Southampton fans and insists he has no intention of quitting after 9-0 loss

ByReuters

Published 04/02/2021 at 20:02 GMT

The Saints were on the receiving end of a 9-0 mauling for the second time in the space of a year. Leicester City crushed them by the same scoreline in October of 2019, and they then suffered the same fate at the hands of Manchester United. Despite the shock score, the Austrian has insisted he has no plans to quit

Ralph Hasenhuttl, Southampton

Image credit: Eurosport

Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl said he was stunned by the outpouring of support and kindness from Saints fans in the wake of Tuesday's 9-0 thrashing by Manchester United - a reaction which has only strengthened his bond with the club.

The defeat at Old Trafford came just 16 months after Hasenhuttl's side were thumped by the same scoreline by Leicester City.

But the Austrian coach is confident his players are ready to bounce back and it is all because of the supporters.

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"The support that I have seen from outside, I must say I have never had such a thing in my managing career," Hasenhuttl told reporters on Thursday.

"Because of this result, I received unbelievable messages from fans. All around this club, it definitely had a big impact on lifting me and lifting my players.

"I want to say a big, big thank you.

I don't want to resign my contract after this game. The opposite will happen in that although it's a tough situation, I enjoy my job even more here and I know I am in the right club and thank you for this."

Teenage midfielder Alex Jankewitz became the latest in a string of players to be racially abused on social media after he was sent off in the second minute of the game against United.

In a statement on Wednesday, the south coast club said they were passing on all abusive messages to the Hampshire Police.

"The club supports him in every way we can," Hasenhuttl said.

"None of us are free from mistakes, not the player, not the referee, not the manager. Nobody. And blaming somebody is a responsibility and I think also for the social media platforms to stop this because it cannot happen."

Southampton, who are 12th in the standing with 29 points from 21 games, travel to Newcastle United on Saturday.

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