New signing Toby Alderweireld believes he has struck up an instant connection with Jose Fonte at the heart of defence and says joining Saints has been a “perfect step”.

The Belgium international made his debut in last Saturday’s 4-0 drubbing of Newcastle, following his loan move from Spanish champions Atletico Madrid.

Paired with team captain Fonte at the back, Alderweireld was delighted with how well the combination worked.

“We can talk, we have a good connection,” said the 25-year-old, whom Saints have an option to buy next summer.

“In the dressing room we talk a lot, so there’s a good connection between him and me, so I’m happy with it.”

Fonte was also encouraged by the pair’s first outing together in the centre of defence.

“He’s settled in very quick,” he said. “He’s a good player, he came from a good school.

“He was playing in Atletico, which is a great team, so he has experience and he’s a player that is easy to play with.”

It is no secret that Alderweireld was in significant demand this summer, yet it was Saints that the highly-rated defender, who can also play at right-back, saw as the ideal place for him.

A large part of the reason for that appears to be down to the presence of manager Ronald Koeman.

“I know him from the Dutch competition,” said Alderweireld, who was a youth team player at Ajax when Koeman was in charge of the club, while their paths also crossed at other times in the Netherlands.

“For me, I had a great year with Atletico (last season) and I wanted to play a little bit more.

“It’s difficult to get the right step, and to play my game, that I can play my game, and I felt this was the best step – it’s a club that wants to grow, it has good facilities, so it was the perfect step.”

Alderweireld, who played in last season’s Champions League final for Atletico, added: “I knew a little bit how the trainer wants to play football, and that’s one reason why I wanted to come here.

“I wanted to play and the trainer really, really wanted me, so that was a very important thing in why I signed.”