Ivan Juric makes "worst team" Southampton FC claim with Derby County record in mind | OneFootball

The Saints are bound for an immediate Championship return

Southampton manager Ivan Juric has revealed his main target for the rest of the Premier League season, which is to ensure that Derby County's unwanted Premier League record remains intact.

The Rams have held the tag of being the worst-ever side to feature in the top flight of English football since it became three points for a win back in 1981.

A chaotic season at Pride Park meant that neither of Billy Davies and Paul Jewell could turn the tide, leading to an accumulation of 11 points from 38 games, something which Juric is looking to at least better, as the Saints are all-but Championship-bound after a disastrous return to English football's elite of their own.

There is still a possibility that Derby could suffer a relegation of their own, with John Eustace's side still narrowly inside the second tier's bottom three ahead of a crucial game-in-hand against Preston North End, as the East Midlands outfit look to build on their recent run of three consecutive victories.

However, alongside staying in the Championship, supporters will also be hoping that they lose the aforementioned tag ahead of Southampton's final nine games of the season, having picked up just nine points from a possible 87 thus far.

Ivan Juric sends Southampton FC message involving unwanted Derby County record

Juric has overseen 13 Premier League matches since replacing Russell Martin in late-December. And, despite still failing to climb off the foot of the table, Southampton haven't statistically been the worst side in the division since then, managing to pick up one more point than Leicester City, who, alongside the Saints and Ipswich Town, are on track to become the Premier League's worst-ever set of promoted sides.

Prior to the recent international break, the Hampshire outfit suffered their 24th defeat of the season, with the Croatian boss declaring that his side had no chance of pulling off the most miraculous of 'great escapes' as the season reaches its conclusion.

However, ahead of their clash with FA Cup semi-finalists, Crystal Palace, at St Mary's on Wednesday night, Juric stated that he wants his side to eclipse Derby's 11-point haul of 17 years ago, which would instantly be achieved if the club were to record a third win of the season.

“We have the goal to not be the worst team in the history of the Premier League. Let’s see what we will do," the 49-year-old said in his pre-match press conference.

Derby County's dismal 2007/08 season

Derby have failed to regain their Premier League status ever since relegation in 2008, with fans hoping that one day, it can be achieved and they can prove their credentials and shake off the aforementioned tag.

The club who won the top-flight twice in the 1970s regained their status in the division after defeating West Bromwich Albion at Wembley in May 2007 after beating the Saints in the semi-finals, ending a five-year spell in the Championship as a result.

Despite making 19 signings across the summer and winter transfer windows, the Rams' hopes of consolidation were quashed just months into the season, picking up seven of their 11 points by Boxing Day, a month after Davies was dismissed after losing to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, with the solitary victory of the season coming through a 1-0 scoreline against Newcastle United in September 2007.

Jewell was appointed on 28th November 2007 with the club just four points adrift of safety. However, the man who had achieved survival with Bradford City in 2000 was unable to weave such magic again, failing to win any of his 24 league matches in charge, as the league's whipping boys accumulated just five draws under his management, with relegation being confirmed on 29th March after a 2-2 draw with Fulham.

"My career never really recovered from going to Derby County," the Liverpudlian admitted in 2021, as he was dismissed in December 2008 with the club languishing in the bottom half of the Championship.

Juric has already described his spell at St Mary's as the most challenging of his managerial career so far, with it looking increasingly unlikely that the former Torino boss will remain in charge next season, with Danny Rohl and Liam Rosenior among those linked with the pending vacancy.