Rob Holding has emerged as a good centre-back replacement for Southampton's exit-linked star Jan Bednarek.
Recently, Jan Bednarek has been the talk of the transfer town with his links to Besiktas. Well, it's concerning for Southampton but nothing compared to the thought of passing upon the £6m paycheck for parting ways with an injury ridden defender.
Agreed, Bednarek has held the lofty centre-back standards at St. Mary's but his fitness downsides can't be downplayed anymore. And a good example of that is no Southampton fan knows whether the Polish international will receive the medical green light to even face Arsenal in some capacity.
Thus, the bottom line is that Southampton can definitely do better with a reliable defender who can fill in Bednarek's boots from next season onwards.
Southampton might turn to former Arsenal star to bolster defensive ranks
And surprisingly, former Arsenal man Rob Holding could be that chosen name according to the Football League World.
Well, a 29-year-old soon-to-be a potential promotion winner with Sheffield United is always a worthy choice. Further, the respectable Arsenal tag worked wonders for Southampton last season with Aaron Ramsdale's signing.
Thus, securing the services of another of Arsenal's forgotten heroes seems good on the surface, isn't it? Well, not to criticise Holding but for all the plus points his lengthy Emirates stay brings to this deal, Southampton should take a glance at the Englishman's fatigue levels also.
The reason being that Holding isn't a sure upgrade on Bednarek due to missing the entirety of almost two full seasons in his career. On top of that, both of them are of the same age so there aren't many pros for the Saints to view Holding as a direct starter to fill Bednarek's void.
Instead, a better approach could be to consider Holding as a squad player who could come in handy whenever Will Still may wish to rotate in the Championship. From Holding's point of view, his work is cut for the playoff final to try and impress potential suitors like Southampton for a summer move.