GOALKEEPER Alex McCarthy has signed a new three-year contract to extend his stay at Saints, according to a report by The Athletic.

McCarthy joined Saints from Crystal Palace in 2016 and has gone on to play 114 times for the club.

The 31-year-old has been selected ahead of goalkeeping rival Fraser Forster for each of Saints' first two Premier League matches this season.

Like Forster, it is understood McCarthy's previous deal was set to expire next summer.

But The Athletic claim he has now put pen-to-paper on a deal until 2024.

Discussing his contract situation earlier this month, one-time England international McCarthy told the Daily Echo: "I haven’t really sort of thought about that much.

"My main focus is on playing as well as I can this season and helping the team as much as possible. That hasn’t really come across my head at the moment.

"Obviously when that situation arises I’ll deal with it then. But for the time being, I’m just happy playing football."

Discussing his plans for McCarthy and Forster last week, boss Ralph Hasenhuttl said: "We will definitely extend the contract for one keeper and then maybe the other one will then leave.

"Because I think in the future we will try to get a new one in also. Next season this is maybe a topic, but there is still a long way to go to that point."