Paul Onuachu had a torrid time at Southampton upon moving to the club back in January but could still have a future with the Saints.
Having signed for the club on the south coast during the winter transfer window for £18.6 million, the Nigerian centre-forward failed to score a single goal in 11 appearances in the Premier League as Southampton were relegated down to the Championship.
Onuachu started the season at the St. Mary’s Stadium under Russell Martin, featuring once in the second tier before a loan move to Turkish outfit Trabzonspor was agreed between the two sides.
Since moving to Turkey, Onuachu has found his shooting boots once more, converting six opportunities in eight matches as Trabzonspor are sitting fourth in the Turkish Super Lig table, nine points behind league-leaders Fenerbahce.
The Real EFL understands that Trabzonspor are in discussions with Southampton to permanently secure the services of Onuachu at the end of the current campaign, having been impressed with the striker whilst on loan at the Burgundy Blues.
Nevertheless, journalist Dean Jones believes that Onuachu will return to England and be handed another opportunity by Martin to show the club why they paid such a hefty price for him less than a year ago.
Speaking to Football League World, Jones said:
“Onuachu obviously hasn’t set the world on fire since landing at Saints, but I actually thought it was a good signing when they brought him in initially. I don’t think he’s really been given enough opportunity to show that he could crack it at Southampton.
“You could argue that that’s not necessarily the club’s fault. They’ve been in really bad times and they’ve been pretty desperate”, he continued.
“They’ve had to try various things and they’ve had different managers. So he’s kind of been a victim of that as well.
“But to see him go away now scoring goals, everyone’s a winner from that point of view.
“I think that eventually he’ll come back to Southampton and he will get another opportunity and just needs to hit the ground running when that happens.”
Writer’s View
Trabzonspor want to keep hold of Onuachu as the centre-forward is currently averaging 0.8 goals per game which is a fantastic ratio. However, given the Saints refused to put an option-to-buy clause in his loan contract, the long-term plan could be for the Nigeria international to return and feature once more.
Onuachu has proven himself to be an excellent goalscorer in European football and perhaps Southampton feel he could still prove a worthy signing in the future.
Deputy Head of Writing
