Saints are ready to wrap up a very quiet January transfer window in double quick time.

The club have tied up a loan deal to bring Dutch winger Eljero Elia to St Mary’s for the remainder of the campaign, but that is likely to be their only piece of first team business in or out.

Saints are not planning at this stage to make any permanent additions to their squad, while manager Ronald Koeman has also confirmed that no players will be sold during the current window, regardless of the size of any offers received.

Koeman also assessed his squad and identified a forward player as the only acquisition he considers necessary, with Elia fitting that bill.

It all means that Saints could have their transfer window business in record time.

Koeman reflected: “I don’t think that we need a defender, I don’t think that we need a midfielder.

“Only in front we have not a lot of options.

“When we start the season I was waiting for Jay Rodriguez to have him back in January and he isn’t back now and that means we need another one.

“Sam Gallagher has an injury and we have to wait how he comes back after his injury and that makes it a little more difficult and that’s the reason we look outside to bring in a new attacker.”