Ivan Juric said he will try to implement a high-intensity brand of football at Southampton as he bids to guide the Premier League strugglers out of the relegation zone.

The former Croatia midfielder, who was appointed on an 18-month contract on Saturday, was previously in charge of AS Roma but was dismissed in November after only 12 matches in charge.

"When I was young I liked death metal music a lot, and that's something I think my style of football is like," Juric told reporters on Monday.

"Work hard, press hard, play good, be intense, all this stuff. I think (the players) can do it. They are young, they are positive, they want to work hard. It's not easy to change the style immediately, but we have to be clever."

Bottom of the league with six points from 17 matches, Southampton are winless in their last seven league games and sit eight points adrift of safety.

"I know it will be a very tough job and I know that in the history nobody has stayed in the Premier League from this situation," the 49-year-old said, adding that he thought the side can do "something exceptional".

Juric's first game in charge is on Thursday when Southampton host West Ham United.