Southampton become first Premier League club to agree player wage deferrals during coronavirus crisis

Agreement: Southampton's players will defer part of their salaries for April, May and June
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Southampton's players have become the first in the Premier League to agree wage deferrals during the coronavirus shutdown.

The Saints' first-team squad, as well as manager Ralph Hasenhuttl, his coaching staff and the board of directors, have all agreed to defer part of their salaries for April, May and June in order to "help protect the future of the club, the staff that work within it and the community we serve".

Southampton have also announced that the club will not be taking advantage of the government's job retention scheme over the next three months.

Majority owner Gao Jisheng and Katharina Liebherr have implemented the measures to ensure the club can continue to pay its regular non-playing staff 100 per cent of their salaries during that time frame.

In a statement, Southampton said: "Any decision on the future beyond this date will be made in advance of this, but only when more information is known.

"In these unprecedented times we are dealing with many challenges to our business model and day-to-day operations.

"The situation is ever-evolving and we will continue to monitor and assess the impact to the club over the coming weeks before deciding any further action necessary.

"Everyone at the club remains fully committed to the community we value so highly in Southampton.

"We will continue to offer our full support to the city of Southampton through the work of the Saints Foundation and provide any further assistance we can."

Through the Saints Foundation, the club have pledged to provide 12,000 hot meals to those in need locally across a 12-week period during the shutdown, with Saints legend Matt Le Tissier helping to deliver food in the city.

Tottenham, Newcastle, Bournemouth and Norwich have all taken the decision to use the government's furlough scheme, with Liverpool announcing that they would before reversing the decision following a fierce backlash.

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