Graziano Pelle has revealed that he held talks with Fiorentina before joining Southampton.

The Italian striker moved to St Mary's Stadium from Feyenoord for £8m in July and has gone on to score five goals in nine games for the Saints.

Despite admitting that joining Fiorentina would have been a "good opportunity", Pelle insists that he is happy to develop his career at Southampton.

"In January there was some contact from Fiorentina after Giuseppe Rossi got injured, but Feyenoord asked for a lot of money and the deal did not happen," the 29-year-old is quoted as saying by Sky Sports News.

"Going to Florence would have been a good opportunity, but I'm happy with how things went and to be at Southampton."

Pelle was recently called up to the Italy squad for their upcoming Euro 2016 qualifiers against Azerbaijan and Malta.