RALPH Hasenhuttl remained coy on the future of shotstopper Fraser Forster this week, not allowing himself to be drawn on whether a new deal will be offered to the 33-year-old.

Forster has had a varied career at St Mary’s, finding himself in and out of the team – and the club, with the giant goalkeeper spending time on loan at former club Celtic in the recent past.

With all four goalkeepers involved in the first team believed to have deals expiring at the end of this campaign, it remains to be seen who out of Forster, Alex McCarthy, Willy Caballero and Harry Lewis will be offered new deals.

On top of the predicament of expiring deals, Hasenhuttl’s goalkeeping headache has been worsened by frequent injuries throughout the campaign.

Caballero was drafted in after injuries stuck both McCarthy and Forster, with the latter regaining match fitness to reclaim the starting berth in Saints’ XI.

With McCarthy still sidelined, Forster has largely impressed since returning in between the sticks, with strong performances in recent weeks.

Speaking about Forster, Hasenhuttl commented: "We always speak about chances, and he (Forster) grabbed his chance definitely.

"I must say we have a fantastic atmosphere at the moment with the goalkeeping team, Willy Caballero is a fantastic character and Fraser has definitely benefited from him because he is really a good guy.

"He has done a fantastic job and this is why after Alex (McCarthy) was injured, we haven't struggled.

“We have good replacements and he has done a good job.

When pressed on whether Fraser’s recent performances would earn the former Newcastle youngster a new deal at St Mary’s, Hasenhuttl sidestepped the question.

Instead, the Austrian chose to praise Fraser for his contributions to the team.

"It is always helpful for me and for him if he delivers good performances, which help us, help him and in the end, the club,” added the 54-year-old.

“This is what we want."