Yan Valery has been described as a perfect example for young players everywhere with Ralph Hasenhuttl pleased with his brave decision to rely on the Frenchman by loaning out Cedric Soares.

There were a few eyebrows raised when Hasenhuttl sent Cedric to Inter Milan on loan for the remainder of the season leaving an inexperienced 20-year-old in Valery as his only real option on the right side of defence.

Hasenhuttl explained that he opted to allow Cedric to leave in order that he wasn’t tempted to make a switch and interrupt Valery’s development at a crucial stage of his career.

The decision has paid dividends with Hasenhuttl’s instincts proving correct with Valery improving week-on-week and coming into tomorrow’s game against Tottenham on the back of his first senior goal, which was a stunner against Manchester United.

Hasenhuttl said: “If you want to push the young players you have to have the chance to bring them in.

“For every manager there comes situations where the young players don’t perform like you immediately want them to perform and then there’s pressure because the other one is still here and is very good – Cedric is a good player.

“So then you maybe think to take the young player out and give the other one a chance and let them wait a little bit, but it protects you from yourself from making these decisions.

“If you give the other away you don’t have the chance and you force him and force him and force him.

“I may tell a young player in the week he’s playing, and sometimes going to Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning you are thinking if it’s the right decision. You have come out of this because you have told him already. To protect myself I do this.

“That’s maybe what I did with Yan. That doesn’t mean he plays every week – I subbed him for Prowsey once at Burnley so it shows there might not be so many players on this position but I still have to work on my performance and still have to develop my game.

“I think he’s a very good example for professionalism for young players.

“On his day off he is still here, he is still working, he is working on his deficits, on his heading or something like that. It’s exactly one player we want to see in our Southampton way and we want to see him do well.”

Valery’s attitude is out of step with how most people would imagine young footballers to be, but with the competition to play in the Premier League so fierce, and the reward for success so great, Hasenhuttl says it is becoming increasingly common.

“I think it’s not so new because a big difference today from history is that at the moment there are so many good players in the world that if you have a chance to play in the Premier League you have to do everything to do it,” he reflected.

“The young players understand this and maybe that’s the reason they are so focused and hard working.”