Will Still is among the contenders for the vacant manager’s job at Southampton, talkSPORT understands.
Still has caught the eye of Saints technical director Johannes Spors following the sacking of Ivan Juric this week.
As previously reported, Sheffield Wednesday boss Danny Rohl is high on Southampton‘s list of targets but is also attracting interest from several Germans clubs including RB Leipzig.
Still is one of the hottest managerial prospects in European football right now.
Born in Belgium to English parents, the 32-year-old took charge of French side Lens last summer.
In his first season in charge he’s led the club to ninth position in Ligue 1.
This is despite having to sell a number of first team stars, including Leny Yoro who joined Manchester United for £52million.
His start to life in management was unique having admitted that playing Championship Manager is what inspired him to embark on a career on coaching.
Having started his professional career in Belgium, he spent two years with Stade Reims before moving on to Lens.
This came after he rejected an offer to take charge of Sunderland, who eventually appointed Regis Le Bris as boss.
Should Still take the job, he’d be tasked with getting Southampton back in the top flight with their Premier League relegation confirmed following defeat at Tottenham last weekend.
Juric who was axed by Roma in November after just 12 games, lasted just 107 days at St Mary’s following his appointment in December to succeed Russell Martin.
But he failed to guide the south coast outfit to Premier League safety, with the club to return to the Championship after just one season.
The Saints lost 3-1 away at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday to seal their fate with seven games remaining.
It means Southampton now hold the record for the earliest relegation in Premier League history.
From Juric’s 16 matches in all competitions as Southampton boss, he won just twice, while losing on 13 occasions.
Juric gave no indication that an exit was to be on cards when asked about his future following the defeat at Spurs, as he said: “No, now we will see everything.
“We are thinking just about the games now. We will see now what everyone thinks, what I think.
“The fans deserve much more and we have to understand all of the mistakes we have made and then create something really strong.
“It’s a difficult day, a tough day but I see the fans, how they love their players and their team – it’s something incredible.
“This experience has to serve to create something stronger than this.”
