Saints are set to be winners off the pitch no matter what happens in this crucial fortnight for as they are set to bank a cool £3m for two week’s work.

The club’s flying start to the season has seen huge media interest in Ronald Koeman’s side and the major TV companies become fascinated with their story.

As a result Saints are in a run of four back-to-back live TV matches.

Sky Sports televised their 1-1 draw with Aston Villa and have also exercised their right to show Saints host Manchester City on Sunday and Manchester United a week on Monday.

Not wanting to be left behind, BT Sport have also swooped in and will televise next Wednesday’s trip to Arsenal.

Each live TV game is worth around £750,000 to both sides who are televised, meaning that the fortnight will earn Saints a handsome bonus of £3m no matter what results they manage to achieve.

The peak in interest in showing Saints live on TV is underlined by the fact that up until the Aston Villa game just one of their 11 matches were broadcast, that away to Liverpool on the opening day of the season.

While this run may have included three major clubs who are also attractive to broadcasters, few would have plumped for the Villa match, or some of the other Saints games that have now been selected.

The TV companies have only confirmed live TV fixtures until the end of January, but even after this run Saints have another four games being screened as Sky and BT Sport try to ensure they do not miss out on this season’s success story.

After more games against big guns on TV, with Chelsea at home on December 28 and Man United away on January 11, are two seemingly more modest matches.

Saints will be the Saturday evening TV fixture when they travel to Newcastle on January 17 before hosting Swansea in front of the cameras on February 1.

That will take their live TV total up to nine games for the season.

Each Premier League team is guaranteed to be paid for ten live matches per season, regardless of whether they actually get shown that many times or not.

Last season Saints were shown exactly ten times, but that is set to be shattered this time round, given that even after that Swansea game Koeman’s side still have a further 15 games left in the campaign.

The downside is a lack of home Saturday 3pm kick-offs which are so beloved by supporters, with Saints having just one such fixture between November 8 and February 21 – and even that will probably be extended Saints host Liverpool at St Mary’s on the latter date, which almost certainly be moved for TV and will then stretch the gap until at least March 21.

However, it is a welcome financial boost to Saints and those in charge of the purse strings at the club will be delighted with the TV companies wanting to show the team playing.

As well as the money for each game shown, every Premier League club is awarded around £52m as broadcasting rights are divided up equally for the base on the domestic TV contract, the overseas TV contract and a central commercial pot.

Last season Saints pulled in a combined total of £76.9m from Premier League TV and prize money, but that will probably be eclipsed in this campaign.