Southampton have appointed a player integration officer – who has been tasked with giving the squad a smooth transition to their new kit.

The club’s 2015-16 kit will be unveiled before the weekend’s clash with Aston Villa and, in a Premier League first, Saints have appointed someone to make sure the players adapt to playing in a different strip.

Dr Barry Gale, an expert in color and pattern psychology, will work with the squad having implemented a strategy he says is fail-safe in improving Southampton’s performances.

“In the last 10 years I’ve established myself as one of the top one thousand color and pattern psychologists in the world,” he said.

“My role at Southampton is a crucial one. Where clubs have been going wrong all these years is not fully understanding the complexities players, and fans, face in moving to a new kit.

“As part of the Show Your Stripes campaign I have developed the Player Integrated Stripe Strategy, which I believe can deliver 0.1 per cent on-pitch improvement, 100 per cent of the time. It’s marginal gains on a massive scale.”

Gale, who has previously worked on television shows such as BBC’s DIY SOS, has already started working on his strategy and it remains to be seen if his innovative approach will benefit Ronald Koeman’s side who are still challenging for a Europa League spot in the closing weeks of the season.

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