THE fans took Ronald Koeman at his word when he said he was staying at Southampton.

The Dutchman was set to stay at St Mary's until next summer, continuing his laudable history of seeing out contracts.

He went a step further than predecessor Mauricio Pochettino in explicitly pledging his future to the club on numerous occasions.

But now he is on the brink of becoming Everton boss - and one of the best paid managers in the world.

With his volte face expected to be complete in the next 24 hours, the Daily Echo has taken a look back through the archives to find all the times Koeman said he was staying on at Saints.

Check out the picture gallery above for his most significant quotes - and let us know in the comments if we've missed any.