Koeman: English managers will remain a minority

Southampton's Dutch manager Ronald Koeman believes English managers will remain in the minority in the Premier League.

Koeman will go head-to-head with rising star Eddie Howe - one of just five English coaches in the top flight - when Southampton meet AFC Bournemouth at St Mary's Stadium on Sunday.

Sam Allardyce (Sunderland), Alan Pardew (Crystal Palace), Steve McClaren (Newcastle United) and Garry Monk (Swansea City) are the other Englishman working in the Premier League.

Former Feyenoord boss Koeman revealed the lure of the Premier League was too much for him to turn down and has defended his appointment on the south-coast.

"I think it's always important to have some foreign managers here because maybe they will bring some new ideas into the game," he said.

"It's also important to protect the English managers, but in the end it's up to the club to make that decision.

He continued: "Maybe it's because there's a European influence in the Premier League, for players and for managers. In my situation it was because of a lot of attention to the Premier League and the FA Cup final when I was a young kid.

"There is always spirit and intensity in the games, and that makes it nice to watch English football. There are also big clubs and that was the reason I was interested to be a manager for an English club team.

"Maybe he [Howe] is one of the future managers because I understand he is still young, and he is doing a great job, managing a club and bringing them to the Premier League was an amazing result for them.

"But like everywhere it's up to the chairmen of the clubs, to the owners of the club, what they think."