RALPH Hasenhuttl said he “understands completely” Saints supporters chanting against him, during the dismal 3-0 defeat at Brentford. The travelling support, who had been impressive and vocal throughout the contest, turned on their manager in the closing stages. Chants of ‘you don’t know what you’re doing’ and ‘sacked in the morning’ were aimed at the Austrian boss, as Saints’ run of just one victory extended to 10 Premier League matches.
Ralph Hasenhuttl said: “At that time they were absolutely frustrated, I understand this completely and I take this no problem. Since I’m here I will always be responsible for every mistake my players make, every shot on goal what is not a goal, I take the responsibility and this is my job. We can understand the frustration because at the moment we are not playing like a Premier League team, especially not in and around the boxes, ours or their box. We had a lot of chances today, moments where we can score but we don’t do it and then we concede goals from when we are not exposed. Two-on-one situations where we cannot clear the ball, running into each other. Then it looks how it looks, the opponents score three times and we do not.”
However, Hasenhuttl insisted he did not hear the chants himself during the match.
Ralph Hasenhuttl added: “I do not hear it during the game because I was concentrating, so it is not something that should hurt because this is the business. We have had very good moments since I’ve been here, beautiful games away, and at the moment we are lacking what they want to see from us. It is absolutely understandable that they are not happy when you concede goals that easily and the biggest chances you don’t score. As I said, it is up to me to find solutions and we will do this.”
The 54-year-old instead praised the supporters for their voice in the Brentford Community Stadium, and across his three-and-a-half year tenure at the club.
Ralph hasenhuttl said: “I think they supported the players quite well, I must say. I cannot say they didn’t do it, they were loud even after a not so easy 90 minutes. This is not the issue for me, if they support the players everything is okay for me. I think they did it and for as long as I have been here they have done it. Especially the away fans, I must say, they are very special.”
