Southampton: Saints Eye Stuttgart’s Orel Mangala as Replacement
The 22-year-old defensive midfielder impressed for Stuttgart this past season and has caught the eye of clubs like Southampton.
Several reports have linked Orel Mangala to Southampton as a potential replacement for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. Fans have clamored for Weston McKennie to be the replacement but if we are to believe the rumours his price tag is a little too much for Saints at this time.
Mangala, would only run the club around £6m which is about a fourth of the cost of McKennie. The Belgian international made 32 appearances for Stuttgart and finished the season with an impressive pass completion percentage of 88%.
He may not be as exciting of a signing as the young US international but there is no doubt there is a solid player in Mangala. Not only is he solid defensively, as a defensive midfielder should be, but he is also strong on the ball and excels in passing.
This will be key in Ralph’s system as it focusses on breaking quickly once a change in possession is forced and if he wins the ball he will be able to pick out an attacking player to start a break.
dark. Next. 5-year deals for Hojbjerg and Walker-Peters
One downside is he would be coming from the second level of German football and may take some time to catch up to the level of play in the Premier League.
Fortunately, Oriol Romeu is still at the club and is more than capable of holding down the midfield until Mangala was caught up to speed. And at the price of only £6m the club would have more than enough cash to pull of the deal comfortable even if they are not able to sell all the players they want this summer.
If we hear any more news involving Mangala we will keep you all updated.