SAINTS manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has been holding talks with the club’s hierarchy over their continued restructuring.

The St Mary’s side brought Matt Crocker back from the FA late last year and appointed him as the director of football operations.

There was a desire to then add another member of staff to the backroom team but, given Saints’ perilous Premier League position at the time, that was parked until this summer.

But with the coronavirus pandemic bringing a halt to football for the foreseeable, the club’s hierarchy have had time to sit down, via conference call, to plan ahead.

The Daily Echo previously revealed that Hasenhuttl has been busy developing what he calls ‘iBook’, which is essentially a coaching and training blueprint for the academy sides.

It’s understood Saints’ manager spent three hours on a call with chief executive Martin Semmens and Crocker earlier this week.

Although many things were discussed, they spoke at length about their ongoing restructuring which is in stark contrast to what came before.

Saints have been keen to move away from their previous model that saw decisions being made solely by individuals without a consultation period.

That model had some success, but it wasn’t sustainable and, ultimately, led to the departures of Les Reed and Ross Wilson.

Hasenhuttl, Semmens and Crocker are believed to have spoken about looking at ways to improve both the medical and sports science departments.

Although the summer was earmarked for changes, the Daily Echo is led to believe that things could be put into place before then due to them all having more time to sit and discuss their options.

Crocker officially started in his role at the beginning of February and will be keen to start putting his stamp on things.

He returned to St Mary’s after spending time leading the FA’s development of team coaching department.

His previous stint on the south coast saw him overseeing the club’s academy at a time when Gareth Bale, Luke Shaw and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain were progressing through it.

However, this is his first job as a director of football operations.

Semmens is also relatively new in his chief executive role, while Hasenhuttl has been coaching for more than 10 years and has a wealth of experience, including a stint in the Champions League.

Because of this, the trio are sticking together and regularly bounce ideas off each other with the sole purpose to improve Saints both on and off the pitch.

Crocker and Hasenhuttl are said to have formed the basis of a good relationship and, despite the current situation making things difficult, they are still in regular contact.