Southampton: Saints star Yan Valery signs new deal until 2023
By Marc Walker
Southampton full-back Yan Valery has signed a new deal until 2023 with the club and looks to be on course to make a spot in the Saints first-team his own for the longer term.
The 20-year-old has been a regular under Ralph Hasenhuttl and has grown into the demands of senior football in his 16 top-flight appearances so far.
As the club’s only senior right-back currently, he remains a vital part of the side going into the final eight games of the season.
Valery joined the Saints youth setup from Rennes back in 2015 and spent the next two-and-a-half seasons developing his game with the Under-18s and Under-23s.
After nearly 50 youth appearances though, he was promoted to the senior squad in January and hasn’t looked back since.
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Fellow right-back Cedric Soares was loaned out to Inter Milan in the last transfer window and it was left for Valery to step up in a crucial time of the season for Saints.
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His youthful exuberance has provided a real outlet for the team down the right flank and he’s excelled playing as a wing-back in Hasenhuttl’s current system of choice.
Promising displays from the Frenchman have been rewarded recently as well after two goals in his last two games against Manchester United and Spurs.
His strike at Old Trafford perhaps summed up his confidence as he strode forward and took on David De Gea with a powerful effort that flew inside the Spaniard’s near post.
The commitment that Saints have now made to him with a new four-year deal shows that they think he has the capabilities to become their first-choice right-back for the long-term.
Cover in this position may be added during the summer but Valery certainly deserves to be the man to replace Cedric for the future.
It remains to be seen whether Cedric will join Inter permanently but it is certainly unlikely that he will have a future at the club after being sent out on-loan by Hasenhuttl.