Southampton have been rocked by the news that summer signing Ross Stewart has been ruled out for the remainder of the season with a hamstring injury.
The Scottish international joined the Saints for a fee of £10 million on transfer deadline day from division rivals Sunderland following weeks of speculation. Having not played competitive football since January after suffering an Achilles injury, the deal represented a risk from the recently relegated team and they had to wait until November to welcome the striker back into the squad.
Stewart’s debut came in the way of a brief cameo in the win over West Bromwich Albion prior to the last international break. He then followed that with another substitute appearance against Huddersfield Town a fortnight later, but they remain his only two outings in a Southampton shirt to date.
News followed that the 27-year-old had picked up a fresh injury concern with his hamstring that was expected to rule him out until the New Year. Initially, a return was touted for the middle of next month, but manager Russell Martin has now confirmed that Stewart could be ruled out for the rest of the campaign. Speaking to the Daily Echo, the ex-Swansea City boss said:
“I think we need to be honest and realistic with Ross. We probably won’t see him again this season.
“Although it’s a short-term pain for us, long-term we need Ross to have a full pre-season. To risk him for three or four weeks this season seems a bit crazy.
“It will depend on the situation we are in. We had to rescan his injury to allow the initial swelling to go down.
Russell Martin has revealed Ross Stewart is unlikely to feature again this season 👇
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) December 22, 2023
“It wasn’t very good news. He will be out for a longer period. I’m devastated for him, the bad news keeps coming.
“I’m not going to come out here and lie and keep answering questions pretending he isn’t going to be fit.
“If you do see him at some point it will be a huge bonus. We need to be a bit more long-term with Ross.
“I still maintain he will be a brilliant signing for this football club over a long period of time. We need to make sure he is right.”
Southampton travel to relegation-threatened Queens Park Rangers this afternoon hoping to leapfrog Leeds United into third. The Whites host second-placed Ipswich Town in the lunchtime kick-off at Elland Road.
Writer’s View
The decision to bring Ross Stewart to St Mary’s was always a gamble due to the length of time that he had spent on the sidelines, but this is nothing more than bad luck. The hamstring injury is unrelated to the Achilles issue which kept him out for over 10 months.
Martin’s support shows that he still believes that the attacker will play a major role at the club, although it will be interesting to see exactly how he fits in upon his return. Southampton have an array of attacking options and should they return to the Premier League, it could be tough for him to break into the team.
Head of Writing
