Jay Rodriguez has handed Saints a significant boost by agreeing to a three-year contract extension.

The 25-year-old has been the subject of fervent speculation over the last year, despite suffering a knee injury which has sidelined him since April 2014.

Rodriguez had just one year remaining on his current Saints deal, agreed when he joined the club from Burnley for £7m in 2012.

But in great news for Saints he has committed himself until 2019.

The next big milestone for Rodriguez will be his return to action.

He is back in full training and Saints remain hopeful he will play at least for the under-21s before the end of this campaign and be fully fit for next season.

Rodriguez was the club’s top scorer last season with 17 goals, and has netted 26 times in 76 appearances since joining the club.

Saints will now be hoping that Nathaniel Clyne follows Rodriguez’s lead and agrees to a new deal with contract negotiations still ongoing.

“I’m delighted,” Rodriguez told Southampton’s official YouTube channel. “It’s a great club and we’ve done amazingly this year.

“It’s been a tough year for myself being out, but I’m really delighted to sign the contract. It’s now about looking forward to the future.

“The medical staff have all worked tirelessly with me, so this is great news. I just want to carry on improving now and to try to get some game time.”

Ronald Koeman added: “This is very good news for the club because there was some speculation about Jay and interest from other big clubs, so it is a compliment to the club that we have an agreement.  

“It has been a difficult time for Jay who has been doing everything to come back in a good shape. 

“It’s a good start to the summer business for us because it shows that everyone here is convinced by what we want to achieve.”