It was probably the worst kept secret in football but Saints have announced that goalkeeper Alex McCarthy has joined the club from Crystal Palace.
Saints have announced that they have signed former Reading and QPR keeper Alex McCarthy on a three year contract from Crystal Palace.
Of course the club are saying the usual statements about competing for a place, but the reality is that McCarthy is here as back up to Fraser Forster.
In truth he is the standard we require, at 26 he has a fair amount of experience although not that much in the Premier League.
With at least six Europa League games to play as well as games in the domestic cup competitions, it could be that Fraser Forster may be rested for the odd game or two to give McCarthy a game or two to keep him sharp.
Executive Director of Football Les Reed said: "Once again, I am delighted to welcome another player to the squad at Southampton.
"We now have two quality English goalkeepers who have both represented the country at International level.
"I am confident that Fraser will soon be England’s number one, and in Alex we have a young player who has already had a taste of the England senior squad, as well as excellent experience at Under-21 level.
"Alex is ambitious and will be pushing for a starting place every time he gets the opportunity, which can only be good for Fraser and a shining example for Harry Lewis and the younger keepers below.
"Working with Dave Watson, our keepers can only get better and, who knows, we could have two Saints stoppers at the World Cup in two years’ time.”
McCarthy said: "I'm over the moon to join a club like this. The club is known for producing young players and they've had successful seasons.
"There's the Europa League to look forward to this season, so there's going to be a lot of games.
"With the stature of the club, I'm honoured to be here and I'm looking forward to getting working with everyone.”
Picture courtesy of Southampton Football Club