Peterborough owner makes bold prediction as he defends Russell Martin

MacAnthony, who has been in charge of the posh since 2006, thinks Martin’s style will click and see Saints climb the Championship table this season.

The Irishman has watched his Posh teams “dominated” by Martin – who played for Peterborough between 2008-2010 – and his Swansea City outfit.

Speaking on his Hard Truth podcast, MacAnthony explained why he thinks Saints fans should back the boss for a little bit longer.

“When you bring a Russell Martin in, you’re basically sacrificing short-term stuff for long-term stuff,” he said.

Russell Martin has overseen three wins in his first eight Championship matches at Saints (Image: PA)

“You’re saying, ‘We’re backing the project’. He plays a certain way and it will take time to get there. They could have got players quicker for him as it takes time.

“I think it’s going to get worse before it gets better but when it gets better for Russell Martin I think Southampton could go on and win 12 games in a row.

“When you get the buy-in from the players and they completely understand what he’s trying to do, they dominate games,” MacAnthony continued.

“Unlike at MK Dons and Swansea, he has the attacking players to finish. We played Swansea in the Championship and for 30 minutes we didn’t touch the football.

“We were completely dominated – but they were only two goals up. They should have been five, six or seven up.

“When he gets it right at Southampton, they’re going to win a lot of games and score a lot of goals.

If I were a Southampton fan, I would say ‘Bite your lip, put on your seatbelt and wait a little bit longer’. I think they will go on a run and then - bang.”

Saints have lost four consecutive matches since the transfer window shut but Saints CEO Phil Parsons told the Daily Echo that they will give Martin “space” to improve the team.