Southampton: Hasenhuttl hints at limited contact with Saints owner Gao

Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has been talking about the club’s financial strength for this important transfer window, whilst also describing his personal relationship with owner Jisheng Gao.

Preparations for a vital upcoming campaign are likely to include a lot of transfer activity, with incoming players likely to join Moussa Djenepo and others likely to leave St Mary’s.

However, a slight strain has been put on this summer’s budget after two Premier League finishes of 17th and 16th in the past two campaigns.

Speaking to Sport Bild, Hasenhuttl said:

"“In the Bundesliga, I would probably compare with Mainz and Freiburg. We are limited in our possibilities, but we are taking a very sustainable and healthy path: we are a self-financing system, living from purchases and sales.”"

Some senior players will therefore need to be removed from the wage bill to generate some funds for incoming additions.

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The young players that the Austrian likes to work with and develop come into the price bracket that could help Saints in this regard but strong negotiating may be needed even so.

Some financial power can be provided by the club’s owner Jisheng Gao, who recently gave his first public interview recently.

Gao quite rightly wants the club to be run in a sustainable way but it appears that he has made little contact with Hasenhuttl so far since the 51-year-old’s appointment back in December.

On Gao’s involvement and the inconvenience of an upcoming pre-season trip to Macau, Hasenhuttl said:

"“Hardly, there is loose contact. For example, if we win against Tottenham, it’s an extreme publicity for him. Such trips (to Macau) I find in the preparation actually suboptimal. That’s why we only have five players plus juniors, the others are in the camp in Ireland. The journey to China has little influence.”"

The promotion of their club in China offers Saints a superb opportunity, but trips such as the one to Macau should not hinder Hasenhuttl as he prepares for 2019/20.

After saving his side from relegation last season, it is important that the club takes strides forward and further up the Premier League table.

They have a superb leader in charge of the football side of things now – and deserve credit for getting him on board – but everything must be in place to aid Hasenhuttl and his staff; not make the job harder.