Southampton will be actively looking to add a centre-back to their squad to fill the void left by Jannik Vestergaard’s impending departure.
Mohammed Salisu may go straight into the starting line-up as a direct replacement but a new defender is required to provide the depth needed for Saints to see the season through with enough in reserve.
When Vestergaard’s move in complete, Saints will have done 17 pieces of business in this summer window. So far, Adam Armstrong, Armando Broja, Romain Perraud, Theo Walcott, Tino Livramento and Dynel Simeu have arrived.
10 players have departed on loan or permanent deals so far and Vestergaard will make that 11 – a number that marks quite a change at St Mary’s.
Three experienced heads in Ryan Bertrand, Danny Ings and now Vestergaard have all departed and it will be a test to see how much Ralph Hasenhuttl can get out of his new group in terms of performances across the season.
From Hasenhuttl’s recent quotes, it seems as though Saints want one more player. A centre-back who is also capable of playing in midfield looks to be desired to cover two positions.
Here are four centre-backs who have been linked with Saints in the recent past: