Over the last few years, Southampton have shown that they have one of the best scouting networks in the Premier League as the Saints have signed future star after future star. 

Notably over the last few years, Southampton have signed superb players such as Virgil Van Dijk, Victor Wanyama, Sadio Mane and Toby Alderwiereld. All players have gone on to be sold for huge fees after spending a few years developing their respective games at the south coast club.

Over the last years or so, one of the Saints more consistent players and one who is seemingly starting to blossom is goalkeeper, Alex McCarthy.

Arriving for £4.23 million in 2016, McCarthy wasn't the most heralded signing to arrive at Southampton after a fairly uneventful tenure at Reading. Playing second fiddle for most of his time at Reading, McCarthy did manage to break into the first XI for the 2013/14 season as he played 44 games for the club in the Championship.

In somewhat similar fashion, he then spent a season at Crystal Palace and Queens Park Rangers where he again barely featured for the club. The former Reading goalie was once again consigned to a second-choice role as he only played in two EFL Cup games in first season at Southampton. However, in his second year with the Saints, he got the starting job ahead of the out of form Fraser Forster and played 18 games in the league as Southampton managed to stay in the Premier League.

This year he has continued his form and has played six games in the league and such has been his form that he was called into the England squad for the games against Spain and Switzerland.

At 28, the journeyman goalkeeper is entering the prime of his career and after eight separate loan spells, it looks like he could well have found a club where he could be the number one for the foreseeable future. It looks as though Southampton may have struck gold yet again with a solid performer whom Angus Gunn could learn a great deal from.