Matt Targett pens new five-year Southampton deal

Southampton Football Club have announced that academy graduate Matt Targett has signed a new five-year contract with the club that gave him his debut in professional football.

The 21-year-old left-back has received mixed opinions on his footballing abilities over the years but has very much been a part of the first team setup.

Playing as a second-choice to preferred option Ryan Bertrand, Targett has seen a decent number of appearances for his beloved team and the man from Eastleigh will hope to kick on this season after his last campaign was ridiculed by injury.

SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 16: Matt Targett of Southampton (33) is givent treatment during the Premier League match between Southampton and Burnley at St Mary’s Stadium on October 16, 2016 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images) /

After making his competitive debut for the first-team in August 2014 against Millwall in the League Cup, the England Under-21 international has made 25 appearances and will hope to compete with fellow left-backs Sam McQueen and Ryan Bertrand.

This contract goes along with a recent trend of Southampton trying to tie down current players on long-term deals instead of going into the market for new recruits which may be clever in the long-term but currently fans will want to see more news regarding signings instead of contract extensions.

Despite still being so young, the left-back will need a solid season this campaign after the injury that has kept him out since October and the recent arrival of Sam McQueen in the first team.

Some fans may say that they would rather see McQueen play as the back-up option to Ryan Bertrand meaning that Targett would be the third-choice but it seems that he is very much in the plans of new manager Mauricio Pellegrino after signing this new long-term deal.

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