LUTON Town have issued a lengthy statement after confirmation that Nathan Jones swapped Kenilworth Road and the Championship for Premier League football at St Mary’s.

Saints confirmed the Welshman as Ralph Hasenhuttl’s replacement on a three-and-a-half year contract Thursday morning, with Luton sharing in their statement that “an acceptable compensation package” had been agreed between the two clubs.

Jones was in his second spell with the Hatters, helping the club from League Two and into the play-offs of the Championship. Saints have been praised by Luton for their “professional” and above-board approach.

On their club website, Luton’s CEO Gary Sweet shared: “We would like to thank Nathan for what he has brought to our club over 303 matches, which is the third most of any Luton manager.

“Together with his staff, and of course the brilliant group of players he has nurtured for the best part of six and a half years, he has given us some fantastic memories and a team to be constantly proud of.

“We all wish him well in his new role and thank Southampton for the way in which everything has been handled. They have acted in a most professional manner since first making their approach to us, as has Nathan.

"The events have panned out exactly as described over the last few days and we appreciate it's highly frustrating to watch, but we would rather it be transparent and, genuinely, the formalities only came to a conclusion in the early hours of this morning. Until then, there remained two possible outcomes.

“Nathan leaves behind a fantastic legacy, along with Alan (Sheehan, first-team coach) and Chris (Cohen, assistant-manager), who have both also played a significant part in taking us on a journey from League Two, in Alan’s case, to establishing us in the higher reaches of the Championship. We thank them both too and wish them every success.

“The fact we are looking up towards the Premier League, rather than down towards League One as we were when we brought Nathan back to the club, makes the Luton Town job an attractive one.”

A message from the Editor

Thank you for reading this article - we appreciate your support in reading the Daily Echo.

Subscribing to the Echo means you have unrestricted access to the latest news, features and Saints coverage - all with an advertising-light website.

You will also have full access to Saintsplus, your new home for Southampton FC tactical analysis, features and much, much more.

Don't just take my word for it - subscribe today.

Follow the latest breaking news in the Southampton area by searching Southampton News - Breaking News and Incidents on Facebook

Follow the latest court and crime news on our dedicated group by searching Hampshire Court and Crime News on Facebook