Luke Shaw says his progression into the First Team has been the stuff dreams are made of – and he hopes there’s more to come in 2013.
The young full-back has started Saints’ last nine games having made his full league debut against Swansea at the start of November.
Since then, Shaw and his teammates have tasted defeat just twice and have drastically improved their defensive record along the way.
“It’s been a dream come true, really,” the 17 year-old exclusively told Saints Player today.
“This is what I’ve always wanted to be doing – playing in the Premier League.
“It’s going good and I’m just getting used to it. Hopefully I can keep it up.”
Saints found themselves up against one of the Premier League’s most physical sides on Saturday, when they played out a dramatic draw at Stoke City.
And Shaw admits that his afternoon at the Britannia Stadium was one of the most testing he has experienced since his first-team breakthrough.
“It was a very different game to those we’ve been playing in recently,” he said. “All of their players are over six feet tall, so it was a different test.
“We couldn’t really get our passing game going so there were a lot of long balls, so it was tough for me because I’m still young – but it was a great experience.”
Next up for Saints is tomorrow’s visit of Arsenal, who come to St Mary’s fresh from an eye-catching 7-3 win over Newcastle on Saturday evening – and Shaw is desperate to play a part.
“We’ve got a big game against Arsenal,” he affirmed, “and, if I’m involved, hopefully I can prove myself there. I hope I play well.
“I’m just looking forward to the New Year and the rest of the games we’ve got. Hopefully we can keep winning.
“I want to help Southampton stay up because we want to be in the Premier League and playing football against the top teams in the world.
“I’m still 17 so I’ve got a long way to go, but if I keep playing well then hopefully I can improve.”
Click here to watch a full interview with Luke Shaw on Saints Player