Southampton eyeing another low budget transfer from Celtic with Christie

Southampton are said to be looking to secure a low budget deal for Celtic midfielder Ryan Christie in the summer transfer window.

That is according to the Scottish Sun, who claim Christie will move onto pastures new ahead of next season after multiple contract offers from Celtic were turned down.

Alan Nixon, who wrote the report, also took to Twitter to suggest that Saints will be watching Christie’s performances for Scotland in Euro 2020 to decide whether they want to pursue a deal.

As a left-footed attacking-midfielder capable of playing on either wing too, Christie would provide something Saints do not have right now and he could provide cover for a number of positions in Ralph Hasenhuttl’s squad.

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Looking at some of Christie’s best bits for Celtic shows that he is a very similar player to Stuart Armstrong. He links play from midfield and then breaks into the box to score when the chances open up.

Being a left-footed player could really help Saints out too. Ralph Hasenhuttl uses two attacking number 10s when his first-choice squad is fit, but the left-sided option was always a right-footer during 2020/21 because the Austrian’s only left-footers are defenders.

This limits the width that his side can play with on the left wing. On the other side, Armstrong is capable with both feet and this enables him to drive infield or take his marker down the line.

Christie seems to be a player who could do the same on the other side of the pitch and this would produce a much more balanced look to things. A record of 40 goals and 41 assists from 142 games suggests that he is able to influence an attack consistently too.

His importance to Celtic would have seen his value at over £10m when he was under a long-term contract but Saints could well snap him up for a much smaller fee with just one-year left on his current deal.