Southampton star Shane Long wrote history for the club and for himself that is likely going to take time to rub off from the history of English football the one he broke having lasted for 19 good years.
Despite such n achievement, the star says he’s not interested in looking for a new contract but rather determined to make a name for himself that would cultivate out a way for him.
Shane Long admits he does not deserve a new contract at Southampton even after scoring the quickest goal in Premier League history.
The Republic of Ireland international, 32, will be a free agent when his current deal expires next summer but he’s not going to seek an extension of the same with the club.
But Long, who netted after just seven seconds in Saints’ 1-1 draw at Watford on Tuesday, said: “I don’t think I’ve earned the right to go knocking on the door and asking for more years.
“As a striker you need goals and I am trying to put my case forward between now and the end of the season.
“It’s hard to validate giving a new deal out if you aren’t getting the goals or the results on the pitch.
Long has scored 24 goals in 145 Premier League games since joining Saints from Hull for £11m in 2014.
The ex-Reading forward, whose side can secure survival by beating Bournemouth on Saturday, said: “The club is an amazing club. The people here like the way I approach the game, the way I train and the way I am in the dressing room.
“Everyone knows I love it here and I know next season is going to be a big season because of the confidence the manager has instilled around the place and I want to be a part of that.
“If it does come to it at the end of the season and I’m not wanted anymore, then I will still look back on my career at Southampton as a good time and something to be really proud of.”
Manager Ralph Hasenhuttl admits he would have stayed clear of the Saints if he thought relegation was a big worry. “If I thought we could not do this, I would not have taken the job,” he said.
“At the moment I made the decision to do this job, it was clear I trust my team and that we can stay in the league.
“The way was a very difficult one, but we invested a lot, my staff and the team in this club, to leave this negative track we were in.
“I think we have now the feeling that we are in a period where something is growing here and that is the most important thing for everybody working in this club, that we see that we started to go on a journey that is going in the right direction.”