Southampton: Should the Saints take a punt on Limbombe?

Yesterday morning it was reported that Southampton were weighing up a move for Anthony Limbombe – but should the Saints take a risk on the relatively-unknown forward?

There’s no denying that this transfer window has been dire so far from a Southampton perspective – the closest the side got to a permanent deal was snatched from under their noses at the last minute. I’m of course referring to the James Maddison transfer, which will apparently be announced at any moment by Leicester City.

A deal for Quincy Promes looks dead in the water and the Saints are in desperate need of a real injection of talent, but they also need a good handful of players to fill the cracks in their squad.

A new back-up right-back and a new centre-back are absolutely essential, but the Saints are also in need of more attacking reinforcement than they already have. Assuming Sofiane Boufal leaves, they will need another winger before they even think about a big-money player – in steps Anthony Limbombe?

Next: Three alternatives to James Maddison

Whilst Huddersfield, Newcastle and a handful of teams in Europe are all keen on the winger, he’s apparently available for within the region of £13 million – at least that’s whats being reported as what the Terriers have bid for the Belgian.

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• Grading the Southampton Transfer Window Part 1: Departures
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• A lament for Southampton legend James Ward-Prowse

In reality, that fee isn’t actually that steep, especially when you consider that a big portion of Southampton supporters have called for the club to spend £12 million on the inconsistent Xherdan Shaqiri.

In the past, Southampton’s signings from less-competitive leagues have generally paid off – Dusan Tadic and Graziano Pelle were hits when they played together and Sadio Mane was perhaps the best winger Southampton have had this century after he was signed from Austria.

Whilst it’s a little too early to tell, Jan Bednarek was impressive in the last eight or nine games of the campaign, having of course been signed from his native Poland.

Whilst the 2016/17 season was less successful for Limbombe, he’s recorded some impressive numbers this time around as well during the 2015/16 campaign whilst playing in the Netherlands.

In both of these years, he was directly involved in nearly 15 goals in all competitions, showing an all-rounded game too as the assists and goals were evenly spread.

Limbombe will turn 24 before the start of the new season, a nice age to sign a winger at – he isn’t so young that he’ll make a lot of mistakes, but there’s still plenty of room to grow. For the fee involved, it really doesn’t seem like too much of a risk in today’s market.

The 23-year-old isn’t the answer to all of Southampton’s problems – a big-money winger like Promes is still a priority as is a new striker, but someone like Limbombe could be a great addition to the depth of the squad.