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Southampton defender Juan Larios has joined Spanish second division side Cultural y Deportiva Leonesa on loan for the upcoming season.

The 21-year-old joined Saints from Manchester City in 2022 and has struggled with injuries since his arrival.

Larios has only played six times for the first team, with his last senior appearance a one-minute cameo in the Carabao Cup second round last season against Cardiff City.

The full-back has played for the Saints under-21s 16 times, assisting on one occasion.

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Southampton have signed US striker Damion Downs from German club FC Koln in a deal worth £7m.

The 21-year-old, 6ft 4ins forward was born in Germany but represents the United States internationally and has five senior caps so far.

He joined Koln's youth teams and after coming through the ranks made 42 appearances for the first team, scoring 13 goals and providing six assists.

Last season Koln were promoted from the second tier of German football to the Bundesliga.

In that campaign Downs played 32 times in all competitions, scoring 11 goals.

"Everybody plays football to win titles," Downs told the Saints website after agreeing a four-year contract.

"To win my first title at 20 last year was a great feeling, and I hope to repeat it again this year.

"I think Southampton is a big club that should be in the Premier League, and that's my goal – to help the team as much as I can to bring the club back to the Premier League."

Southampton captain Jack Stephens has signed a new three-year contract to extend his stay at the club.

The 31-year-old has been at Saints since 2011 and has made exactly 200 appearances for the first team.

Back in 2023, he signed a two-year deal and last season in the Premier League he made 19 appearances, scoring one goal.

During his time at Southampton he has left on loan a number of times, with spells at Swindon Town, Middlesbrough, Coventry City and most recently AFC Bournemouth in 2022.

"It's been an absolute privilege to play for this club and continues to be a privilege for me," Stephens said.

"I'm very proud to not only play for the club but to captain the club as well, so it's an amazing feeling for me and my family to carry on the journey here and hopefully we've got plenty of good times to come."

Stephens was made captain two years ago and lifted the Championship play-off final trophy at Wembley in 2024 after Saints beat Leeds to win promotion.

"Jack has been an important figure for the club on and off the pitch over many years," technical director Johannes Spors said.

"We value both the quality and leadership that he brings and we see him continuing to be an influential part of the squad moving forward, so we're pleased to have reached this agreement to extend his long association with Southampton."

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Defender Jan Bednarek has left Southampton after eight years at St Mary's to sign for Porto on a permanent deal.

The Poland international, who joined Saints from Lech Poznan in 2017, made 254 appearances for the club in all competitions and scored 11 goals.

Bednarek was a key figure in the Southampton side that won the Championship play-offs in 2024 before being relegated a year later.

The 29-year-old, who has won 69 caps for his country, featured in the 2018 World Cup, as well as two European Championships as a Saints player.

He also played in the 2022 World Cup during a five-month loan spell at Aston Villa, for whom he made three Premier League appearances.

Southampton said in a statement:, external "Everyone at Southampton Football Club would like to thank Jan for his years of dedication both on and off the pitch and wish him every success in the future."

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Southampton have signed Denmark international Mads Roerslev from Brentford on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee.

Roerslev, who can play at right-back or wing-back, made 146 appearances for the Bees after joining them six years ago but has not featured for the Premier League club this season.

The 26-year-old began his career at FC Copenhagen and made his debut at 17 before joining Brentford in 2019. He spent the second half of last season on loan at Wolfsburg.

He told his new club's website, external: "I see Southampton as a really good team who controls a lot of games, works hard and suits my way of playing. It was just an overall positive feeling about everything."

Southampton were relegated from the Premier League last season and have begun their Championship campaign by taking four points from their opening two games.

Johannes Spors, Southampton's group technical director, said: "Mads comes to us with lots of experience, both in the Premier League and in the Championship. He knows what it takes, not only to win promotion from this division, but to build on those foundations at the very highest level.

"At 26 years old, he arrives at a good age to help us in the short term, as well as in the seasons ahead."

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Southampton have signed goalkeeper George Long from fellow Championship side Norwich City on a season-long loan.

The 31-year-old has spent the past two campaigns with Norwich, making a total of 24 appearances for the club.

Prior to joining the Canaries, Long had spells with Sheffield United, Oxford United, Motherwell, AFC Wimbledon, Hull City and Millwall.

"I'm really delighted to be here. It's just a huge club, first and foremost, a club with ambition," he told the Saints' club website., external

"Obviously being in the Premier League last year, I'm sure the ambition is to get back there as soon as possible. From what I've seen already, it's a fantastic setup, an ambitious club and a huge fanbase."

Saints have won one of their first three league games in the Championship since being relegated from the Premier League last term.

They take on Norwich in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.

"He's a player who brings tremendous experience and a level of professionalism that will be invaluable in setting standards throughout the squad," Southampton technical director Johannes Spors added.

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Southampton defender Yukinari Sugawara has joined German side Werder Bremen on a season-long loan.

Werder Bremen have confirmed the deal includes an option, external for them to make Sugawara's move permanent next summer.

The Japan international joined Southampton from AZ Alkmaar last summer and made 32 appearances in his debut season at St Mary's.

The right-back, 25, has made three appearances this season under new boss Will Still but will now spend the remainder of the campaign with the Bundesliga side.

Sugawara told Werder Bremen's website, external: "I'm really happy to be here. Werder is a big club, and I can't wait to play at the stadium in front of the fans."

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Southampton defender Armel Bella-Kotchap has joined Hellas Verona on a season-long loan.

The deal includes an option for the Serie A side to buy Bella-Kotchap, 23, permanently.

Centre-back Bella-Kotchap joined Southampton for around £8.6m from then-Bundesliga club Bochum three years ago.

He started well, his form helping earn his Germany debut against England in September 2022 and a place in their squad for World Cup in Qatar that year.

But he has played just five more times for Southampton since the end of his 2022-23 debut season.

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Southampton have signed Middlesbrough attacking midfielder Finn Azaz on a four-year-deal.

The 24-year-old has joined for an initial fee of £12m that could rise to £14m with add-ons, reports BBC Radio Solent.

In 93 appearances, Azaz has registered 46 goal contributions in the second tier for Boro and Plymouth Argyle.

Azaz joined Middlesbrough from Aston Villa in January 2024 and played 68 games for the club, scoring 17 goals and contributing 17 assists.

"It feels amazing, obviously it's been talked about for a little while," Azaz told the Southampton website, external.

"I'm really happy to be here and I'm really, really excited to prove I can play for a Premier League club.

"I know we're in the Championship now, but we're trying to operate at Premier League level to ultimately get promoted, win the league and get back to the Premier League."

Southampton's group technical director Johannes Spors said: "Finn is a player with tremendous ability who will bring extra creativity to boost our attacking options.

"He is a proven performer in the Championship, and we look forward to seeing him continue his impressive development here at Southampton."

Saints boss Will Still described his latest signing as a "proven" player in the Championship, while Azaz has also won seven caps for Republic of Ireland at international level.

The playmaker represents the latest addition to the squad following the high-profile departures of Tyler Dibling and Mateus Fernandes.

"His stats speak for themselves," Still told BBC Radio Solent.

"He's a proven goalscorer and assister in the Championship, he has scored and has been important for every team that he has played at.

"He has always been available between lines, he gets in the box and is able to anticipate things before most people.

"He is often in a space where he is able to turn and look forward, he can be very important."

Saints have also agreed a deal to sign West Bromwich Albion's Tom Fellows and are also in talks to sign German central midfielder Caspar Jander from FC Nuremberg.

Reports have suggested, external they are also close to reaching an agreement for Heidenheim winger Leo Scienza.

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Southampton have signed Danish defender Elias Jelert from Galatasaray on a season-long loan.

The 22-year-old full-back has been capped by Denmark and has also played for FC Copenhagen at club level.

Jelert appeared in both the Champions League and Conference League for Copenhagen, and has also played in the Europa League at Galatasaray.

"When I heard the interest from the start, I was like, 'ok, I know the club from the Premier League, I know that the goal is to get back up and I want to be a part of that ride'," he said.

"I think it's very realistic to go back up, so for me it was a good plan."

In the summer, Jelert played in all three of Denmark's matches in the European Under-21 Championship.

Southampton's group technical director Johannes Spors said: "Elias is a versatile player who can play on the right or left side of defence.

"He has also played in midfield too, which is a great asset in adding to our squad depth.

"He is a player who has come from successful environments at FC Copenhagen and Galatasaray. Elias is used to winning, which is exactly the culture and mentality we are striving to build here at Southampton."

Southampton have signed winger Tom Fellows from West Bromwich Albion on a four-year contract in a deal that could rise to £10m.

Fellows, 22, leaves the Baggies - where he came through the academy - for an initial £8m plus £2m in add-ons.

The England Under-21 international made 96 appearances for West Brom in all competitions, scoring nine goals.

"Tom is a really exciting player, very direct with lots of pace who brings a fresh dynamism to our attacking line-up," said Southampton's group technical director Johannes Spors on the club website, external.

He added: "He is still very young, with his best years ahead of him to develop his game, but he already has valuable experience in the Championship and had an excellent year at West Brom last season. We are confident in his ability to help us immediately."

Fellows, who had the joint-highest number of assists in the Championship last season with 14, is Southampton's seventh signing of the transfer window.

"It's obviously a massive club and the ambition was clear to me: they want to get in the Premier League, and that's a clear goal," Fellows said.

"I'm looking forward to a new challenge for me at a new club, so I've got to test myself again and I'm looking forward to it."

Fellows is the Championship club's third signing of the day following the arrivals of midfielder Finn Azaz from Middlesbrough and German Under-21 international Caspar Jander from Nuremburg.

The Saints also sold midfielder Mateus Fernandes to West Ham in a deal worth more than £40m.

Southampton have signed midfielder Casper Jander from German club FC Nuremberg for £10.4m (12m euros) fee.

The 22-year-old has agreed a four-year contract with the Championship club after starting 32 of Nuremberg's 34 games in 2. Bundesliga last season, having joined them from MSV Duisburg.

He played against England for Germany in this summer's European Under-21 Championships in Slovakia.

"Southampton is such a big club with so much tradition and so many big players played here," Jander said.

"What they want to do with the club, building a new environment with a lot of young players, and the plan to go back to the Premier League, I was really interested to come here."

Saints have taken four points from three Championship games this season following relegation from the Premier League in May. They will take on Watford at Vicarage Road on Saturday (15:00 BST).

"Caspar is an all-round midfielder who has unsurprisingly attracted a lot of interest, including from Premier League clubs," said technical director Johannes Spors.

"Choosing to sign for Southampton outlines the belief that he shares in our vision as a club, and our positive reputation for improving young players. We are excited to see Caspar continue to develop with us."

Jander's arrival continues a busy end to the week for Will Still's squad as midfielder Mateus Fernandes has been sold to West Ham for £40m while playmaker Finn Azaz has arrived from Middlesbrough for £12m and West Brom winger Tom Fellows is expected to follow.