Southampton are looking ahead to the summer transfer window already and have identified a fullback in the Premier League as one of their primary targets, according to the latest reports.
The Saints suffered a major blow on Saturday afternoon when a goal in the fifth minute of stoppage time from Cian Ashford sealed all three points for Cardiff City in a 2-1 win in Wales, ending the visitors’ three-match winning streak.
Three consecutive victories on the spin had moved Russell Martin’s side to within five points of the final automatic promotion spot with a game in hand on both Leeds United and Ipswich Town. Unfortunately, this opportunity was wasted at the Cardiff City Stadium at the weekend in what has all but condemned Southampton to a place in the play-offs.
Southampton still have some valuable assets on the books that the club have been able to afford to keep hold of for 12 months as a result of parachute payments after being relegated last season from the top-flight. However, these parachute payments are greatly reduced next season should the Saints fail to earn promotion back to the Premier League.
Martin spoke about the club’s future struggles if this becomes a reality over the coming months, admitting that players like Kyle Walker-Peters will likely leave the St. Mary’s Stadium:
“I think if we get promoted it becomes a lot easier to keep him,” Martin said. “If we don’t, we won’t keep hold of Kyle. There’s no point in pretending otherwise really, financially for the club and Kyle’s ambitions as well.”
According to the Sunday Mirror, Southampton may already have a replacement for Walker-Peters lined up as the club have reportedly joined the race for West Ham United fullback Ben Johnson. The 24-year-old’s contract expires with the Hammers at the end of the campaign, while Crystal Palace, Leeds and Ipswich are also keeping tabs on his progress in East London.
Johnson has turned down two contract offers to stay at West Ham, meaning a summer move is likely for the defender.
Writer’s View
Johnson currently has a market value of £4 million, as per the CIES Football Observatory, but with his contract running out within the next few weeks, Southampton could potentially snag him for nothing which would be a good acquisition by the club.
The Englishman isn’t as good as Walker-Peters right now. However, given that spending another campaign in the Championship is a real possibility, the Saints may be able to offset losses from their reduced parachute payments by selling Walker-Peters and replacing him with Johnson.
Deputy Head of Writing
