Saints Marching
Fansided

Southampton Summer Wishlist: Chris Bird

By Christian Bird

SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - MAY 21: Ryan Bertrand of Southampton and his family take part in a lap of appreciation after the Premier League match between Southampton and Stoke City at St Mary's Stadium on May 21, 2017 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images)
SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - MAY 21: Ryan Bertrand of Southampton and his family take part in a lap of appreciation after the Premier League match between Southampton and Stoke City at St Mary's Stadium on May 21, 2017 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 6
Next
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND – MARCH 03: Chris Wood of Leeds United celebrates scoring his second goal with Kalvin Phillips during the Sky Bet Championship match between Birmingham City and Leeds United at St Andrews (stadium) on March 3, 2017 in Birmingham, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND – MARCH 03: Chris Wood of Leeds United celebrates scoring his second goal with Kalvin Phillips during the Sky Bet Championship match between Birmingham City and Leeds United at St Andrews (stadium) on March 3, 2017 in Birmingham, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) /

Chris Wood (Leeds United)

The Leeds talisman netted 27 goals in 44 outings this season, which was the highest total in the Championship. However, with Leeds pushing for promotion, they fell short of the playoffs by a narrow margin, and their prolific striker could be a potential prospect for Premier League clubs including Southampton.

The Leeds striker would follow in the footsteps of a shortlist of strikers who had emerged from the championship to light up the country’s elite division. I do not feel this would shake him up the slightest, as he has experience in abundance having played for many English clubs as well as teams back in his native homeland, New Zealand.

He has won 47 caps for his country, scoring 19, which are strong figures at this level. If he could settle into the system at Saint’s he could be an excellent signing for them. Although Leeds will want money for him, it is surely a more cost-effective and sensible risk than going for some Porto player that has no English grassroots whatsoever?