Southampton intend to fend off Championship rivals Ipswich Town and keep striker Adam Armstrong, as revealed by Adam Nixon via his Patreon.
The Tractor Boys are targeting a move for the Southampton forward and are reportedly willing to go as high as £8 million to add the former Blackburn Rovers striker to their squad. However, new boss Russell Martin is keen on keeping Armstrong at St. Mary’s this season, said to be a fan of the forward’s attitude and goalscoring threat.
Armstrong was left out in the cold last season in the Premier League, as the Saints were relegated from the top flight along with Leeds United and Leicester City, but was included in Russell Martin’s team in their first Championship fixture with Sheffield Wednesday on Friday evening. And the 26-year-old got himself on the scoresheet unintentionally, Nathan Tella’s strike deflecting off of him and hitting the back of the net as they won 2-1 at Hillsborough.
The forward made 30 appearances in the Premier League for the club last season, with 16 of those coming from the bench and 14 in the starting lineup. In that time, he hit the back of the net twice and provided one assist, but the Saints were on the receiving end of some poor results. Armstrong was signed from Blackburn Rovers, where he made 160 appearances, scoring 64 goals and notching 19 assists.
Armstrong started with Newcastle United and was loaned to League One sides Barnsley and Bolton Wanderers. He made 35 appearances with the Tykes, scoring six and assisting four. During his time with Bolton Wanderers, he scored three goals in 23 appearances. The forward also spent time with Coventry City. His time with Newcastle came to an end in 2018 when Blackburn Rovers made his loan move permanent. He remained at Ewood Park until 2021 before being signed by Southampton.
Kieran McKenna is looking to reinforce his side this season following last season’s promotion to the Championship from League One, and he has his sights set on Armstrong, but Southampton are reluctant to sell. McKenna currently has Conor Chaplin at his disposal in his side, who enjoyed a stellar goalscoring campaign last season with 26 goals in 45 games.
Ipswich Town kick off their season this evening against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.
Writer’s View
Southampton are targeting an immediate return to the Premier League, and Armstrong’s goalscoring prowess could help them achieve that. His first goal was unintentional, but he does have a talent for scoring, as proven during his time at Blackburn Rovers in the Championship. Ipswich are looking to reinforce in the Championship and provide competition to Chaplin, but it seems they may have to look elsewhere.
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