Southampton name Mauricio Pellegrino as new manager

The 45-year-old, who played 12 games for Liverpool in 2005, has managed Valencia, Estudiantes, Independiente and, most recently, Alaves.

Pellegrino has signed a three-year contract at St Mary's and will join up with the club next week ahead of the start of pre-season training.

“I am really happy to become the new coach of Southampton Football Club," Pellegrino said. "The club has a great reputation for having a strong and stable structure, competing in the Premier League and playing attractive football.

“I think my philosophy and the culture of the club will work well together. We have to be a team on and off the pitch; I want to make the supporters proud of the players and to feel part of the game every week. I want to win matches, be successful and develop a team spirit where everyone gives 100 per cent and supports each other.

“I am excited and passionate about what the future holds for us and look forward to meeting the players and beginning our preparation for the new season.”

Southampton vide-chairman Les Reed added: "I am delighted that after a diligent selection process we have recruited Mauricio Pellegrino as our new first team manager. Mauricio impressed us throughout with his depth of knowledge, motivation and ability, communicating this in a professional and passionate way. He has an excellent understanding of the Southampton Way, and his style of play and aspiration matches the philosophy, culture and ambition of the club.

"We firmly believe Mauricio is the right person to help us take the next steps. He knows our players and believes we have a great squad that with some fine-tuning will be able to deliver continued success. Mauricio believes with the quality we have we can play exciting, attacking football, taking the game to our opponents by playing a high-intensity game. He will continue to develop and introduce young players whilst building on the core of experience that we have in the squad.

"During the recruitment process Mauricio quickly became our first choice and, while he had other options, we are delighted he feels that St Mary’s is the right place for him and we believe he is the right fit for us. We are looking forward to working with Mauricio to take the club forward and achieve more success with this team.”

The Saints sacked manager Claude Puel earlier this month. The French coach joined Southampton in the summer of 2016, but struggled to make a noticeble impact as the club drifted to a mid-table finish - 15 points off the European places.

The news did not come as a shock after Southampton slipped from sixth in the league under Puel's predecessor Ronald Koeman to eighth, with even a League Cup final appearance not enough to save the 55-year-old Frenchman.