Saints head coach Tonda Eckert suggested he has made his opinion that James Bree should be given a new contract “very clear” this season.
The 28 year old’s current deal is set to expire in the summer, while it looked as though his Saints career might be over earlier this campaign.
Bree spent the first half of the season on loan at Championship Charlton Athletic, but he has been a mainstay under Eckert since he returned.
The former Luton Town defender has started each of the last 10 league games, totalling 62 appearances for Saints since signing in January 2023.
Asked if he wants Bree to be awarded a new contract, Eckert said: “Yeah, my opinion is very clear, and I think I’ve said that a couple of times.
“He has some excellent qualities that he can give to us as a group. He gets appreciation from us, and he’s been delivering since he came back.
“Especially with a lot of high-talent profiles that we have brought in, I think it’s important that you also have some consistency there.
“I mean, he’s played over 250 games in the Championship, he can play inside the defence, he can play outside, and he can play a little bit higher.
“He’s very reliable in the things he does, and he can deliver set plays on the other end. I think it’s quite a nice profile to have in your squad.
“My job is to prepare games, but there are some conversations that I have with the club, asking about my opinion on players. I’ve expressed that.”
Bree has scored two Championship goals and set up two more for Eckert, while he also netted the extra-time winner against Leicester in the FA Cup.
He only made 19 appearances during the 2023/24 promotion-winning season, as Kyle Walker-Peters starred for Russell Martin at right-back.
Eckert towed the party line on on-loan Bayern Munich goalkeeper Daniel Peretz, for whom Saints hold an option to buy this summer.
Standard procedure with option-to-buy agreements is they cover only the deal between the clubs, and the player would still need to agree a contract.
This differs from an obligation-to-buy, such as how Saints signed Taylor Harwood-Bellis from Man City, where all contract terms are pre-signed.
“I think the whole contract details are more a thing for Johannes [Spors] to answer,” said Eckert, on his future. “I’m not reading the contracts.
“What I can say from my view is that he’s been getting better and better after every single game. I think he’s come in with a lot of confidence.
“For a goalkeeper that hasn’t played as many minutes, that confidence is just growing game after game, and I’m sure that he’ll be very important for us.”
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