Adam Lallana dreams of playing Premier League football with Southampton having committed his future to the club.
Playmaker commits to club and sets sights on Premier League
Adam Lallana dreams of playing Premier League football with Southampton having committed his long-term future to the club.
The 22-year-old signed a new four-and-a-half-year contract last week, ending speculation linking him with a move to Newcastle, Fulham and Wolves.
Lallana became free to talk to other clubs at the beginning of this month as he entered the last six months of his previous deal before putting pen-to-paper.
The playmaker featured in Southampton's impressive 2-0 FA Cup win over top-flight Blackpool on Saturday, and he admits he enjoyed the taster.
"It's always good to test yourself against Premier League opposition, even though they made a few changes," said Lallana.
"So did we because there are a lot of games coming up, and I felt we thoroughly deserved the win.
"We had a lot of chances and we got there in the end because we kept persevering.
'Brilliant'
"I feel I can push myself to the limit every week when I am playing and it's brilliant to play against Premier League teams to see if you can play at that level.
"Obviously as a team we want to push on forward to get to that place.
"The Premier League would be lovely to play in but we've got to take it one step at a time and get promoted out of League One as our first goal. Let's not run before we can walk."
Boss Nigel Adkins brought on Brazilian forward Guly Do Prado, who added extra comfort to Southampton's win with an 89th minute strike.
Guly has agreed to make his loan move from Cesena permanent, a decision Adkins welcomes with open arms.
"Guly came on and had an effect on the match with a fantastic strike," said Adkins.
"He's a marquee player. He's a joy to watch. His attitude is tremendous. He's signed long term, he's committed himself, for me he is a magnificent signing."
