Gaston Ramirez is hoping tonight will offer another chance to prove he still has a future at Saints, with Ronald Koeman praising the £12m man’s professionalism.

Just a couple of months ago it seemed as if Ramirez’s time at Saints was coming to an end, with the club prepared to let him leave with just a year remaining on his contract.

However, Ramirez stayed at the club and has finally found a run of fitness since the close of the transfer window, prompting Koeman to bring him back into the fold.

Ramirez came off the bench and set-up Sadio Mane’s late equaliser at Liverpool and is hoping for a chance to shine in the Capital One Cup fourth round tie against Aston Villa at St Mary’s tonight.

With Mane suspended and Jay Rodriguez and Shane Long out, he might just a get an opportunity.

“We know the situation with Gaston,” said Koeman.

“It’s the last few years he was unlucky with injuries, he always had some bad injuries in the pre-season, and also for this season I was expecting him to have a good pre-season because every player to come to that level what he can show needs to be 100 per cent physically good.

“Already this pre-season he had some problems physically, he lost two, three, four weeks in pre-season, and that’s so difficult.

“Now in the last few weeks, he was always working hard but he was a little bit unlucky with injuries, and now he is working hard, he deserves opportunities.

“We have some injuries in our forwards – Mane can’t play and that means other players get opportunities. I expect they take those kind of opportunities.”

Despite many people writing Ramirez off, Koeman tried to keep an open mind.

The one time club record signing, who moved to Saints from Bologna in 2012 but has struggled for a consistent run of games since, has impressed with his professionalism.

That was what swayed Koeman to keep faith with him.

“I was always positive about his individual qualities as a player,” admitted Koeman.

“Sometimes I had my doubts about his physically in the Premier League, because a lot of time injuries, he was on loan to Hull City last year, because it was difficult.

“What I like from Gaston is with all that kind of problems, with all that not a lot of opportunities, he was always working hard, he was always a very good professional.

“That’s important and then I am the first to give him that chance to play, that opportunity, if he is ok.

“We know his qualities. It’s a technically very good player.

“That’s all how everybody is working, how the team is doing, and that’s his situation and we will see what happens in the coming month.”