DAN PETRESCU is desperate for the new season to get under way so he can prove his commitment to Saints and new boss Stuart Gray.

The Romanian international, pictured below, is back in action after undergoing hernia surgery and wants to lay the ghost of one of the longest-standing assumptions in football by seeing out what could be the remainder of his playing days with Saints.

Petrescu is fully aware of the rumour-mill tales that he will join up with former Saints boss Glenn Hoddle at Spurs, but stressed: "I'm happy here at Southampton.

"It's no secret that Glenn brought me here and, because I played under him at Chelsea, people will always make that link between me and him.

"But I've said many times that I don't want to leave.

"Even at Bradford I wasn't the one who asked for a move. The club decided they didn't want me and that they wanted to let me go.

"It's the same here. If the club is happy to have me here, then I'm more than happy to stay and I would be quite happy to see out my contract," says Petrescu, who has two years left of the three-year deal he signed in January, taking him up to the age of 36.

Injury limited Petrescu to the first three of Gray's nine-game spell as caretaker boss at the back end of last season.

But Petrescu doesn't feel as though he's starting from scratch with a new manager.

"It's the same manager as last season so nothing has changed there. I like Stuart and we get on well."

Petrescu's hernia operation just over three weeks ago was a complete success, but he admitted the last three months have been an injury nightmare for him.

"This is the first time in my career that I have been out for so long a time," said Petrescu, who missed Saints pre-season trip to La Manga for a spell of rehab at the National Sports Centre at Lilleshall.

Scott McDonald scored once in each half as a Saints Reserve side won 4-0 at Basingstoke last night.

Adam Wallace put Saints ahead on two minutes with Adrian Caceres increasing the lead on 18.

McDonald scored the first of his brace on 42 minutes and the young Aussie striker got his second half-way through the second half.

Dan Petrescu played a full 90 minutes.