Southampton: Saints targeting January transfer for Man United talent

Southampton are reportedly targeting a January transfer deal for Manchester United full-back Brandon Williams after missing out on him in the summer.

According to the Athletic, Saints will move to sign the England Under-21 international on a loan deal in a bid to bolster their defence and, more importantly, their full-back options.

They also claim that United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer assured Williams that he would get significant game time in the 2020/21 season after blocking Saints’ move to bring him to St Mary’s.

That has not been the case though and the 20-year-old has only made two starts in the League Cup so far.

He did play 31 minutes of United’s Champions League group game against Istanbul Basaksehir on Tuesday but it remains to be seen whether that will result in a longer run in the team.

What Saints are targeting by pursuing Williams is cover for both right-back and left-back – something that they are unsure on at the moment.

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Yan Valery and Jake Vokins are waiting in the wings if either of Kyle Walker-Peters or Ryan Bertrand picks up an injury, but Ralph Hasenhuttl does not seem keen to throw them into the side yet and will see them as needing more development.

Williams came through the ranks at Old Trafford as a left-back but is able to play on both sides of the defensive line given that he is right-footed.

One or two loan signings could be absolutely crucial to push Saints on after January if they keep up their current run of form for a longer stretch of time.

They sit in fifth place in the Premier League table after a 1-1 draw with Wolves on Monday and are seven games unbeaten after really finding the perfect system and the perfect players to compete in the top-flight.

Saints have a very competitive squad and that includes some players who can in multiple positions, but it will be interesting to see which players they target to potentially revitalise things in six weeks’ time.