FORMER Saints boss Gordan Strachan has rated Southampton's chances of surviving in the Premier League under Russell Martin.

Strachan questioned whether Southampton will allow the 38 year old coach to "stick to his guns" if things become challenging in the top flight. 

The 67 year old, who is Martin's former Scotland boss, also drew comparisons to Burnley's relegation after they won the Championship under Vincent Kompany.

Speaking to Prime Casino, Strachan was discussing if Southampton's time back in the Premier League will be brighter now Martin is at the helm.

He said: "Well, there's two things to consider when answering whether Southampton will be better equipped for the challenge of the Premier League and that is the club and the manager.

"Will the club allow Russell to stick to his principles and play the football he wants to play against a higher level of opponent if things aren’t going well? Will they keep the faith? 

"Russell has set up his teams like that throughout his management career. He did the same thing at MK Dons and Swansea.

"I think he even mentioned that Southampton took a big chance on him because he only finished 10th with Swansea.

"You wouldn’t say that was a particularly brilliant season for Swansea to be fair.

"Southampton’s ownership like his style of play. He's stuck to that, and he's stuck to what he thinks is right.

"Do I think that'll be right? You could probably say that Burnley were a better side going into the Premier League than Southampton currently are, and we all know what happened there.

"That's the decision that both the club and Russell have to make. Burnley ran away with the Championship (in 2023), and Southampton finished fourth, with a similar style of play.

"He’ll either stick to his guns and they will survive, or he’ll get them relegated and end up with the Real Madrid job next year (laughs)."

Saints sealed their Premier League return by beating Leeds United in the Championship playoff final at Wembley last month.