Southampton Continue to Strengthen Squad with Steven Davis Signing

Southampton continue to strengthen their squad for their return to the Premiership with the signing of former Rangers captain. Steven Davis, on a free transfer.

The central midfielder was available when Davis turned down a contract transfer to the new Rangers consortium led by Charles Green. The Rangers had been voted out of the Scottish Premier League earlier this week.

According to the Southampton web site, Davis, who also serves as captain of the Northern Ireland national team, agreed to a three-year deal.

While at Rangers, Davis was named the Scottish player of the year in 2010. He tallied 21 goals in 211 career appearances with Rangers. Davis revealed why he chose Southampton over other clubs in a statement released from the club:

"

"There was quite a bit of interest in myself but, after speaking to the chairman and the manager, I saw the ambition the Club has shown. They've had a lot of success over the past couple of years to get to this stage, and they don't want to stand still - they want to keep moving forward, and that was a big thing for me."

"

The signing is the second big addition to the Saints roster this offseason, following the signature of young striker, Jay Rodriguez, after his transfer from Burnley. Rodriguez scored 21 goals in all competitions in 41 appearances last season. 

Southampton don't appear to be done with the transfer market yet either. According to ESPN, Saints are close to finalizing a deal with Vitesse Arnhem of the Netherlands for defender Alexander Buttner. The 23-year-old left back apparently needs to pass a physical before the deal is finalized.

Saints may also continue to look for a goalkeeper for the future.

Southampton reportedly had a bid for young Birmingham goalkeeper, Jack Butland, rejected earlier this week. Current Saints keeper Kelvin Davis will turn 36 in September, and Tommy Forecast, who has yet to play a first-team game for Southampton, is the only other senior keeper with the club.