Southampton fans have taken to Twitter to reveal that they want Shane Long to be handed a new contract.The Republic of Ireland international's current deal is set to expire in the summer, and he is free to negotiate a pre-contract deal with other clubs when the January transfer window opens, given the fact that there are just six months left on his contract.

Long has made five Premier League starts this season under Ralph Hasenhuttl, with four of those coming in the month of December as the 32-year-old enjoys a mini-resurgence in the Southampton first-team.

When detailing what the Saints could do in the market this January, Sky Sports reported that Maya Yoshida and Cedric Soares are also out of contract at the end of the current campaign - their article states that any of the trio could leave next month.

We outlined here why the former Reading, West Brom and Hull man is deserving of a new deal given his efforts this season and for what he can bring to the side, and it seems like a handful of Southampton supporters on Twitter agree with that statement.

This fan named Nathan said that he would "100%" keep the energetic forward at St Mary's, before saying that he doesn't mind if Yoshida stays or goes.

These fans echoed that sentiment, with Lee revealing that he'd "definitely" keep Long around before another supporter named Scott said that he would do the same, but only for "an extra year" - additionally, a Twitter used who supports Southampton with the username #IngsForBallonDor also said that they'd give Long just an extra year.

Elsewhere, this fan also said they'd keep the Irishman on the south coast, but prefixed their revelation with the words "oddly enough" - hinting that it would be a strange decision to do so.

Calling all Premier League experts: Who do these unique statistics belong to? Find out below....

Lastly, this fan kept their reaction short and sweet by simply saying that they'd "give Long another year" - falling in line with what the two aforementioned supporters above thought in terms of the length of time they'd keep the striker around.

In other news, this Southampton target would help kill two birds with one stone for Hasenhuttl this January...