Saints boss expects backing

Nigel Adkins is confident he will be given sufficient time to help Southampton pull away from the relegation places this season.

The future of the Saints boss has been in doubt of late as the side have struggled to adapt to life back in the Premier League following last season's Championship promotion campaign. The south coast outfit have managed just one win so far, while Sunday's 2-1 defeat against Tottenham at St Mary's made it seven defeats in nine outings to leave them stuck in second-bottom spot in the table. However, despite talk of Saints chairman Nicola Cortese looking for more experienced managers to come in and rescue the club, Adkins is adamant he will be treated fairly. The former Scunthorpe boss, who took over at St Mary's in 2010 and guided the side to back-to-back promotions from League One, said: "I'll get time from the board. You need to be confident and positive. "We're all working hard for each other. We have regular meetings for all employees and I told them that we've had plain sailing in recent years with back-to-back promotions. But this season it is going to be a bit choppy. "But you have to stick together and come through the storm. Then you say, 'Well done'. It's a great challenge and one we are enjoying. "No-one said it was going to be easy. This is the hardest league in the world and we are giving a good account of ourselves."