Championship newcomers Southampton are interested in signing midfielder Bobby Clark, who has made 10 appearances for England at a variety of youth levels, from Austrian giants RB Salzburg, as per Football League World.
An Unsuccessful Stint Abroad
After joining the Liverpool academy for a fee of around £1.5 million, Clark made 14 appearances for the Reds between 2022 and 2024, netting once in the Europa League.
Jurgen Klopp’s assistant Pep Lijnders left Anfield in the summer of 2024 to become manager of Salzburg, taking the midfielder with him for £10 million.
Unfortunately, Lijnders’ time in Austria did not go to plan as he parted ways with the club after just five months at the helm. This had a knock-on effect on Clark.
The 20-year-old featured fairly regularly under Lijnders and showed flashes of ability, such as when he scored against SC Austria Klagenfurt from the bench.
But, new manager Thomas Letsch used Clark sparingly and he ended up out of the matchday squad entirely on multiple occasions. The former Liverpool man the season having started just seven league games.
The England under-20 international has also been left out of Salzburg’s squad for the Club World Cup with Letsch highlighting poor performances in training as his reason for not taking the midfielder to the United States.
Where Could Clark Fit In At Southampton?
The Saints will be looking to rebuild in the second tier under Will Still after a turbulent past few seasons which have seen them hire multiple managers.
Veteran midfielder Adam Lallana announced his retirement from professional football earlier this month and Still will also be losing Lesley Ugochukwu and Albert Grønbæk, who will rejoin their parent clubs upon the expiration of their loan deals.
This means that Clark could potentially play in a deeper or a slightly more advanced midfield role, though he may have to compete with Shea Charles, who was on loan at Sheffield Wednesday last season, for a deep-lying position. Additionally, if young starlet Tyler Dibling departs, there could be opportunities for Clark to play on the left wing.
Writer’s View
This could prove to be an excellent pickup for the Saints.
There is clearly a fractured relationship between Clark and Salzburg which should mean that they are able to pick the midfielder up for a relatively cheap fee.
Will Still has built an excellent reputation of being able to improve individuals whilst in France and he would undoubtedly be able to help Clark fulfil his potential.
