Don't wait 30 years - sign up for our daily football email newsletter today! Sign up Thank you for subscribing See our privacy notice Invalid Email

The 27-year-old Ireland international has signed a four-year contract with the south coast club who paid their Premier League rivals £12m for his services.

Saints manager Ronald Koeman expressed his delight at landing the hard-working frontman.

He said: “Shane is a very good player. As a striker, he’s different to Graziano Pelle, which is something we needed.

“He brings ambition and a great mentality – he’s always running and always working, and he’s very down-to-earth. He’s a great person, and we need that type of player.

“He brings a lot of experience to our squad because he’s already played at Premier League level for a few years. He knows what we need at this level, and he can show that to our younger players as well.

“Shane will be an important player for us and our future.”

Former Reading star Long told how the move "came out of the blue" as he had only joined Hull in January.

He said: “I’m delighted. This came out of the blue for me but, once I’d come and had a look at the training facilities and met the manager, it seemed like the right decision for me and my family.

“It was a hard decision for me to make, but when you come down to Southampton you see how big a club it is and how well set up it is.

“You look at how well they did last season and they are developing a new squad for this year to try and achieve those accomplishments again, and hopefully I can be a big part of that.”