A huge European club's sporting director is now pushing to sign an "amazing" Southampton star for a £42m discount this summer, according to a fresh transfer update.
Southampton transfer news
Saints are preparing for their biggest match of the season, as they come up against Leeds United in the Championship playoff final next Sunday. Their 3-1 win over West Brom on Friday night saw them a book place at Wembley, with a return to the Premier League within touching distance.
Getting back into the top flight would be huge for so many reasons, not least because of the boost in finances and ability to attract top players to Southampton in the next few months.
Flynn Downes has enjoyed an excellent season for Saints on loan from West Ham, with the Englishman starting 33 league games and completing an incredible 93.4% of his passes. He has shone so much that the south coast club are reportedly keen on making his move a permanent one at the end of the season. Promotion could hold the key, however, highlighting the importance of getting over the finish line against Leeds.
Rangers attacker Kemar Roofe has also been linked with a summer move to Southampton, with the 31-year-old departing the Scottish Premiership club on a free transfer.
Sporting director wants to sign Southampton ace
According to a new report from Calciomercato [via Sport Witness], Juventus want to keep Southampton star Carlos Alcaraz on loan for another season, with sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli pushing to get a temporary deal over the line to bypass the release fee in his contract.
Max Allegri's sacking has increased the chances of it happening, with the manager not as fond on him as Giuntoli, and he is seen as a player who could thrive under incoming manager Thiago Motta. Not only that, but a loan move would save the Serie A side €49.5m (£42m) because they wouldn't be triggering his Southampton release clause.
In truth, Saints' only real hope of keeping Alcaraz involved at the club next season is if they are in the Premier League, but this update suggests that another year away could be expected. The 22-year-old is a player who Russell Martin clearly values greatly, saying of him back in October: "We wanted Charly in the team because he has trained so well His mentality has been great.
"I put him in a role that suits him more than the other ones he has played in recently. We wanted to free him up a little bit. We did that I think – he was amazing with it. We sat down a lot this week and went through it and watched a lot of clips. His understanding of it was really good. I’m really proud of him and really pleased for him. He was outstanding [Saturday]."
£50,000-p/w star Martin desperately wants to keep set to leave Southampton
A frustrating decision for Martin…
ByTom CunninghamMay 17, 2024
The lure of staying at arguably one of Europe's biggest clubs could be great for Alcaraz, although at some point, Southampton are going to need to cash in on him, so a loan move which allows his contract to tick down and the club's negotiating posititon to weaken is risky.
