Mauricio Pellegrino has revealed that he spoke to former Southampton boss Mauricio Pochettino about taking over the St Mary's job.

The 45-year-old was installed as Saints boss last month following Claude Puel's axing at the end of last season and he follows in the footsteps of fellow Argentine, Pochettino, who guided the Saints to eighth in the 2013-14 season before leaving after an 18-month spell to take over the Tottenham job.

And Pellegrino revealed that Pochettino helped him make the decision to move to England and test his managerial abilities in the Premier League.

"We were talking about the club, about the team, about the possibility that the club has got to grow in the future," Pellegrino told the club's website.

"I am really grateful to Mauricio and I would like to do the same and try to improve from the last few seasons, because the team have been playing at a good level and I have to take the best things from the past and try to improve to be better in the future."