Reed: Koeman contracts talks going "positively"

Executive Director of Football Les Reed has said that discussions over a new contract for boss Ronald Koeman are going "positively."

Ronald Koeman's future has been subject of media speculation recently with the Dutchman being linked to the vacant Everton managerial position as well as a replacement for Arsene Wenger.

Koeman has persistently dismissed these rumours, claiming that he will definitely see out his contract with Southampton which expires at the end of next season. However, Southampton are keen to tie Koeman down to a new contract with the club keen to keep hold of their record breaking boss.

Towards the end of the season, Koeman told the Southampton board to show their ambition in their bid to keep hold of the highly rated manger. In response to that, three key first team players, Fraser Forster, Virgil van Dijk and James Ward-Prowse, all signed new long term deals with the club.

Now, with the spotlight on Koeman's contract, Executive Director of Football Les Reed has said that talks over a new contract for the Southampton boss are going "positively".

Reed said: "Everything is going very positively at the moment. It’s important that we talk about our ambitions being aligned and that we are all trying to achieve the same things.

"So those discussions have been going ongoing and we’re now at a point where we’re getting down to the detail of the contract which is where agents and lawyers get involved."

Reed said that the hat-trick of contract extensions towards the end of the season showed the club taking big steps forward.

"As you’ve seen, the extension of contracts of our own players to consolidate the core of the team going forward is another big step forward."

Reed also explained the importance of having a manager that is passionate about the profile of the club that they're  at.

"Ronald ticked all the boxes and met all the criteria. We’ve found a manager who buys into it ['The Southampton Way'], is a good coach and a tactician. We built a squad that meets the profile of the club.

"We want to play exciting, quality football, play out from the back – all the things that Ronald is passionate about and wants. He’s done a great job and will continue to do so."