Southampton boss Nigel Adkins has promised his side will not abandon their footballing principles now they have won promotion back to the Barclays Premier League.
After an absence of seven years, during which time the Saints spent two terms in the third tier of English football, a 4-0 victory over Coventry on Saturday guaranteed the south coast club's top-flight return.
Adkins is confident Southampton will be able to compete at their new level, and he revealed blueprints for top-flight football have been in place at St Mary's for some time.
"Southampton Football Club are back in the Premier League and that's a wonderful thought," said Adkins, who has now claimed four promotions in six seasons as manager of Southampton and Scunthorpe.
"What we've got to do now is enjoy this moment in time, plans have already been in place from a structure point of view.
"This is a Premier League football club so a lot of work has gone on behind the scenes. We're now in the big league and we've got to do well in it.
"You look at the way we've played over the last two seasons and I want us to play football, I want us to pass it about.
"You're not going to be able to do it consistently but the ball's king and whoever's got possession of the ball's king in my mind. If you can do that and score goals you know you're going to have an opportunity.
"So we know it's going to be challenging, but it's possible, it's been proven.
"I'm sure the chairman, Nicola Cortese, has got massive ambitions for the football club but that'll be for another day."
Southampton's rise back to the top table is nothing short of extraordinary given their recent past.
Having fallen into administration in 2009, suffering associated the 10-point deduction from the Football League, the Saints dropped into npower League One.
Starting the following season with another points deduction, the 2003 FA Cup finalists had to wait a further year to clamber back into the Championship.
But it has taken less than 12 months for the Saints to go marching on into the Premier League.
Adkins stressed how important the family element has been in Saints' success.
He said: "It's a fantastic bunch of players and staff, and families - because they've got to put up with a lot haven't they?
"You're all business people and hard-working people and there's times you never see your families, but you've all got to be supportive of each other.
"I'm sure we've got many, many players here and staff - and I certainly have with my family - who go through it with you and are very supportive and it's fantastic."
Goalkeeper Kelvin Davis, one of Southampton's most pivotal players over the course of a long campaign, is thrilled to get the chance to test himself in the Premier League once again.
Davis spent one year in the top flight with Sunderland and, at 35 years of age, he has another opportunity to test himself on the big stage.
"This is a great achievement," he said. "I had one brief spell in the Premier League and that was not that enjoyable.
"Now I can't wait to be there again.
"There's no doubt this club is ready for the Premier League. It has a great infrastructure and is growing.
"It's all about growing in a controlled way which it has and I'm just so pleased these rewards have come.
"The fans have backed us all the way, playing their part and sticking with us and they deserve it so much and I'm delighted for them."
