SAINTS' defence looked short of pace during the 2-0 loss to Aston Villa last Saturday.

But European scout Terry Cooper said a centre half with pace wasn't a pre-requisite when he was asked about providing names for possible new signings.

Speaking about Michael Svensson's injury nightmare, Cooper said: "It's thrown our plans up into the air.

"Centre half was one position you could have looked at and thought we were alright in.

"You had Michael Svensson, who is a lynchpin for us, and Claus and you had Fitz Hall as cover.

"But Fitz has been tapped up by Crystal Palace - he probably thinks the grass is greener on the other side but he'll probably find it isn't.

"And the biggest problem for Paul (Sturrock) regarding Michael Svensson is that he doesn't know exactly when he will play again.

"It's not as if a doctor can tell you 'well, he'll be back in four weeks'."

Cooper added: "I don't look for pace when I look at a centre half - I look for footballing ability and a footballing brain.

"There's no point signing someone because they're quick if they haven't got a brain.

"I know if I go to France there are a lot of strikers with lightning pace, but they haven't got a brain.

"If you want to sign people who are quick you should go to Athens and sign some 100m runners."

Cooper added: "There's too much emphasis on pace - pace is only okay if you've got ability and can read a game.

"I played with Bobby Moore, he wasn't the quickest but his brain was the best.

"If you find someone with a great brain, great ability and great pace then clubs like Real Madrid will be interested."

"Southampton is a hard club to scout for - you're working within a specific package.

"It's no good me going to watch Barcelona for instance - if I did go I'd watch the reserves or the kids. If I go to Spain I'll be watching someone like Real Zaragoza or Osasuna.

"I always have to look underneath the top clubs."

Cooper admits Sturrock's planning will be thrown into more confusion if James Beattie quits St Mary's.

"That's another area where we thought we were okay - up front," he remarked. "You look at James Beattie and Kevin Phillips, and then you have Peter Crouch and Brett Ormerod - that's four strikers, we are alright there.

"Then you get the speculation about Beattie, and I know it will be difficult to find a good replacement who will fit into our transfer fee/wage fee structure."