Aribo gets new coach as Southampton picks Nathan Jones

Super Eagles ace Joe Aribo now has a new coach in Nathan Jones after the former Luton manager agreed deal with Southampton following the sacking of  Ralph Hasenhuttl..

Jones agreed a long-term contract after meeting with the Premier League side on Wednesday.

Southampton are understood to be paying Luton a compensation package of around £2.5m for Jones and his assistants, Chris Cohen and Alan Sheehan.

The 49-year-old will be at Southampton’s Carabao Cup game against Sheffield Wednesday on Wednesday night before being confirmed as Saints’ new manager on Thursday.

Speaking after Luton’s 2-0 defeat at Stoke – his former club – on Tuesday, Jones admitted Southampton were a “wonderful Premier League club”.

He added: “It’s not the first opportunity I’ve had to speak to people but I haven’t wanted to. This is slightly different because of the situation and the club that it is. It will take something really special to take me away from here.”

Jones was in his second spell in charge of Luton having led them to the Championship play-offs semi-finals last season, where they lost to Huddersfield. He also guided the club to automatic promotion from League Two when he was first appointed.

Jones left the club in 2019 to go to Stoke, but after an unsuccessful nine months in charge he was sacked and returned to the Hatters in May the following year.

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Luton are ninth in the Championship, two points adrift of the play-off places after 20 games.

Southampton sacked Hasenhuttl on Monday after nearly four years in charge at the club following their 4-1 defeat to Newcastle.

The Austrian was the Premier League’s fourth-longest serving manager, having taken over at St Mary’s in December 2018, but departed with the club inside the bottom three.