Southampton fans left bewildered upon listening ridiculous half-time explanation | OneFootball

At half-time against Wolves, boss Juric subbed off in form Southampton star Mateus Fernandes. Yet, it wasn't for an injury, making his substitution an utterly bizarre call.

Southampton's recent Wolves matchday marked 3 months of ex-boss Russell Martin's exit. Now, not sure of you, but for most of the Saints fans, their respect for the Scot must've increased in this time.

After all, no matter how much he got called out for his defensive approach, he never became a fan rebel.

Know why it's being discussed? Because his successor Ivan Juric is on course to becoming one if not already. And if it's for anything, it's due to his ridiculous decisions.

Notably, building on his previous questionable calls, the Croatian committed a hat trick of lineup mistakes against Wolves, yesterday. And that was when we exclude the manager's bewildering Mateus Fernandes decision.

Mateus Fernandes' unutilized substitution cost Southampton a loss

So what happened was that initially, Juric started Fernandes directly upfront. Further, he was taken off at halftime for an unconvincing display in an unconventional role, where he was deemed to fail.

If that didn't anger you till now, realizing the boss' sub-off decision surely will. To note, it wasn't for an injury or anything, but solely instantaneous.

As quoted by the Daily Echo, Ivan Juric clarified any injury concerns, saying: "No, no. He's good. I expected today a little bit more of him, but it's normal for a guy who is 20 years old. Yeah, physically, he could play."

Now, certainly, Onuachu, who came for Fernandes scored later, but it's easy to understand that the move could've been better.

Wouldn't it make sense to take off a defending option for Onuachu? Definitely, it would've, allowing Fernandes to go back to his preferred midfield role with the scoresheet reading 0-1.

Still, that's what went unnoticed by Juric, and the result was another deserved loss, this time against Wolves.