Southampton midfielder James Ward-Prowse has signed a five-year contract, the club has announced.
Ward-Prowse Signs Long-Term Contract Extension
Played Every Minute
Ward-Prowse, 25, hadn’t missed a single minute of Premier League football throughout 2019/20.
The club-captain has been with the club since 2003 and extends his commitment to the Saints.
The five-year deal will keep him at the club until he turns 30.
Lacking International Recognition
Ward-Prowse has been capped twice by the England national team, though is yet to start for his country.
He has played an important role at St Mary’s since turning professional. Having made 278 appearances for the South Coast club, he has managed to score 24 goals and assist 33.
The Embodiment of Southampton F.C.
“I have said before that Prowsey is a player who shows everything that Southampton Football Club is about,” manager Ralph Hasenhuttl told the club website.
“It is not only his story of being developed as a player here, but also the commitment and attitude he shows in his work. He was not playing so much when I arrived, but he has listened and worked on every aspect of his game, and that is why he has reached the level he is now at.
“He has a passion for the club that everybody knows about, and he is respected by everyone here. I know he is a role model for our younger players especially, and these are all reasons why he was the right choice to be a long-term captain of this team and club,” Hasenhuttl, who made Ward-Prowse club captain toward the end of the season, said.
Repaying the Faith
“I think everybody knows it’s a club that’s very close to my heart,” Ward Prowse told the club website.
“I started out here as an eight-year-old and just had that goal of wanting to reach the first-team, and my appreciation for the club is so big because the people within it and the infrastructure has allowed me to follow my dream as a young boy who wanted to play professional football.
Ward-Prowse may not be the most glamorous player to emerge from the Southampton academy, but he may be the one to give Southampton the most back on the pitch in recent years.
He has reaffirmed his loyalty to Southampton, a club he feels he owes a great deal to after the faith they have shown in him.
“They’ve given me every opportunity and every helping hand along the way to reach that target and for me again it’s another opportunity to repay that faith to everybody who’s played a part in my journey up until now.
“Not just within the team, but the club, I really feel that it’s an exciting period for us. I think we’ve regained our identity as a team and I think we’re heading in the right direction towards where we believe we can go as a club.”
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