The 20-year-old had an impressive Premier League debut at the weekend against Aston Villa.
The Saints have turned their season around in the last few months after a terrible start to the campaign. Hasenhuttl’s men are now 12th in the league, just seven points off fifth-placed Manchester United.
After spending the last two league games as an unused substitute, Hasenhuttl called Smallbone into the starting lineup against relegation-threatened Aston Villa and the 20-year-old impressed many.
The Saints boss was pleased with the young man’s performance on Saturday in the 2-0 win and claimed that Smallbone is the future of the club.
He said: “It was important for me to see that even under pressure, you can give a young lad a chance and it works. It for sure was a brave decision, I think.
“He was very brave on the ball, he showed a few goal moves and had a big chance for scoring when his shot was deflected and hit the post. It would have been fantastic if he had immediately a goal. But he’s the future and this is the way of our future.”
Smallbone looked quite assured for someone who hadn’t ever played in the Premier League before. If his shot that hit the post had gone in, it would have given him a huge boost, but even without that he should take a lot of confidence from his debut.
Smallbone is likely to get more chances from now till the end of the season. The youngster has all the qualities to thrive in Hasenhuttl’s system and if he can keep his head down, he will end up being a fine player for the Saints.
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