Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl is willing to allow Steven Davis to leave next month.

Davis's hopes of a return to Rangers were boosted last night after Southampton cleared the way for his exit in January.

The midfielder, who turns 34 on New Year's Day, is out of contract in the summer and would relish a second opportunity with his boyhood heroes Rangers.

Davis, one of the players who quit Rangers in 2012, is free to talk to clubs on his birthday and new Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl won't stand in the Northern Ireland international's way.

Hasenhuttl said: “We have a lot of positions where we have too many players and maybe one or the other is leaving us and we can bring in something new."