SAINTS' executive director of football Les Reed revealed that new manager Claude Puel was at the top of a "very impressive shortlist" of candidates to be Ronald Koeman's replacement. 

The former Nice boss has signed a three-year contract at St Mary's, with former Aston Villa caretaker boss Eric Black and Pascal Plancque joining him as assistant manager and first team coach respectively.

"The process to appoint a new first team manager has been diligent and meticulous," said Reed. 

"In order to ensure we appointed a manager who would meet our needs as a club, feedback from the dressing room, as well as taking account of our culture, vision and values, was critical in drawing up our criteria for the appointment.

"As the process eliminated a number of excellent candidates, Claude clearly came out on top of a very impressive shortlist. We have not only got the best man, but the right coaching team to support him.

Daily Echo:

"Eric Black has an excellent pedigree as a coach and vast experience domestically and internationally. Pascal Plancque has an excellent record as a technical coach and, like Claude, has been responsible for developing many young French talents into top quality players.

"The development of our young Academy players and delivering a pathway to the first team is key to the role. We were keen to appoint a coaching team who would also work closely with Martin Hunter and Radhi Jaïdi in accelerating the development of our youngsters, as well as developing our current first-team squad as individuals and as a team."