Southampton could be set for a welcome windfall as one of their stars is attracting concrete interest ahead of the January transfer window, with Russell Martin seemingly happy to let him leave.
Southampton expected to be active in January
The Saints signed 15 new players over the summer as they looked to adapt to life in the Premier League, but that is yet to bear fruit as they sit rock bottom.
With just one win to their name all season, Southampton are already five points from safety and threatening to be cut off from the other 19 teams in the division. Their most recent defeat, a 3-2 loss to table-topping Liverpool, clearly showed their problems as all three goals stemmed from mistakes from Martin’s side.
First, they lost the ball inside their own penalty area, before Alex McCarthy misjudged a race with Mohammed Salah and to rub salt in the wound, summer signing Yukinari Sugawara handled the ball inside the box to concede a spot kick which Salah duly converted to seal all three points.
Things are not likely to get any easier immediately for the St Mary’s side, with games against high-flying Brighton, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Tottenham in their next four before a trip to Fulham, all of whom are in the top half of the Premier League as things stand.
| Southampton’s next five Premier League games |
|---|
| Brighton (Away) |
| Chelsea (Home) |
| Aston Villa (Away) |
| Tottenham (Home) |
| Fulham (Away) |
The Saints are expected to be active in January despite their numerous summer additions, with a move for Romano Schmidt having already been mooted on the south coast.
St Mary’s exits may be needed to balance the books though, and now one man could be on the chopping block.
Belgian side willing to pay £8m+ for Southampton striker
That comes as reports in Belgium claim that Champions League side Club Brugge are ready to shell out to sign out-of-favour Southampton man Paul Onuachu permanently in January.
The striker has been out of favour since his arrival on the south coast and spent last season out on loan with Turkish side Trabzonspor, where he found the net 17 times in 25 appearances.
However, his chances under Martin have been few and far between; the striker started his first game of the season against Liverpool and was not even part of the squad for the first five games of the campaign.
It was claimed that the Saints were “prepared to keep him” if no suitable bid came forward, hardly a ringing endorsement of Martin’s faith in the striker, and his reluctance to start the Nigerian has proved that yet further.
Now, they and he may be offered a way out. After Onuachu was “told to find a new club” by the Saints, Club Brugge have shown an interest provided that they can get a deal done for “an amount under ten million euros” [£8.3m], though of course negotiations could drive that higher.
Onuachu, meanwhile, is keen to leave the south coast side permanently and “is already looking forward to a return to the Jupiler Pro League”, where he starred for Genk before joining the Saints in 2022.
Out of contract in 2026, Southampton may not get a better chance to minimise their losses on the forward, who they paid £15m to sign in 2023, while those funds could be used to battle relegation.
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