Premier League: 10 Managers Who Should Never Have Been Sacked

5. Nigel Adkins - Southampton What Nigel Adkins achieved in his 2 and a half years at Southampton is nothing short of miraculous. He took over a Southampton team who had been relegated from the Premiership to League 1 in just 6 years. He managed to steady the ship and in his first season in charge he managed to get Southampton back into the Championship after securing a second place finish in League 1. A period of steady growth was expected for Southampton after their promotion to the Championship. Following an explosive start to the season though, they emerged as one of the favourites for promotion. Southampton's impressive form would continue for the rest of the campaign and they would stay in the top 2 for the entire season. They again finished 2nd which was enough to secure back-to-back promotions and a place in the Premier League. It was more than even the most optimistic of Southampton fans could ever have dreamed of just two years previously. You wouldn't be crazy for thinking that achieving consecutive promotions would be enough to keep Adkins in a job for at least 1 full Premier League season. However, Southampton's owner didn't feel the same way and Adkins was sacked just 6 months into the new season. The sacking came as a major shock to most fans,especially considering Southampton had climbed up to 15th in the table following a 2-2 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. He had remained extremely popular amongst the Southampton fans, despite the clubs poor start to the season. Nigel Adkins can hold his head up high following his achievements with Southampton and will go down as one of the clubs best ever managers. He will certainly go down as one of the most popular managers ever to get fired.