Gunn targets fast start

Saints won four and drew one of their five summer friendlies, culminating in a triumphant return to St Mary’s in Saturday’s 2-0 victory over 1.FC Köln.

Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side have made a habit of starting games quickly, scoring early in all five pre-season encounters, including three times in the first three minutes.

Now Gunn wants to open the league campaign with similar intent.

“We’ve got to start well this season – that’s definitely something we’ve been emphasising this year,” he said.

“We’re unbeaten in pre-season, so it looks good from an outside point of view, but there are still things we can work on in training.

“That’s what we’ll be doing this week in the build-up to the Burnley game, but all the games we’ve had have been a great test and I feel like we’ve performed in all of them, which is a positive sign going into the season.”

The young keeper is hopeful he has done enough to start Saturday’s trip to Burnley as Hasenhüttl’s first-choice stopper.

“At the back end of last season I got great minutes and it was a great opportunity for me to show what I can do,” he added.

“The manager doesn’t give too much away, but I’ve got some good minutes in pre-season and l feel like I’ve done pretty well in all the games, so that’s all I can do really.

“All of the lads are the same – you don’t want to be too comfortable in your position – you want to feel that pressure behind you that pushes you to improve yourself.”