Saints manager Mauricio Pochettino was tight-lipped on suggestions today that the club have agreed a record fee with Roma for striker Pablo Osvaldo.

Italian media have this afternoon reported that an €18m (£15.3m) transfer has been agreed between the two parties, and that Saints have upped their offer to the 27-year-old, who is previously said to have turned them down.

Pochettino said: “It’s one of many names that have popped up during the summer, that we’ve been linked with him.

“We’ve always worked behind doors with our signings, we’ve been very careful not to leak out any information, and we’ve been very private about our work.

“So, again, we’ve been very cautious with our work. There’s always been a very good communication between me and Nicola.

“It’s still clear that there’s some weeks left in the transfer window, so we’ll be possibly looking at other players, but again, handling that in a private manner.”