Adam Lallana wanted to return to Southampton this season

Ten years after leaving the Saints to join Liverpool in a £30 million transfer move, Adam Lallana completed a remarkable return to the St. Mary's Stadium. Lallana came through the youth ranks at Southampton and spent a season on loan at Bournemouth before establishing himself as a starter in the Saints midfield. Lallana made 265 appearances for Southampton scoring 60 goals and providing 45 assists in his first spell at the club.

After that Lallana became a key part of the Liverpool team, which became one of the best European teams under Jurgen Klopp's management. The 36-year-old box-to-box midfielder won the UEFA Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League in the following season before leaving the Reds to join Brighton. Brighton improved their squad with experience and quality with the addition of Lallana, and qualified for the UEFA Europa League after a brilliant 2022/23 season where they finished sixth in the Premier League.

Adam Lallana wanted to return to Southampton this season

Lallana played four years at Brighton and left the club on a free transfer to join his former club Southampton, who achieved promotion to the Premier League under the management of Russell Martin. Now, manager Russell Martin has revealed that Lallana wanted to retire at Southampton and thus willingly agreed to join the Saints after ten years. Southampton want to stay in the Premier League and thus, they need quality players with Premier League appearance and Lallana is a proven performer in the English top flight.

Lallana made his Southampton return debut in the 5-3 win over Championship side Cardiff City in the Carabao Cup. In the next match against Brentford, Lallana gave the assist on Yukinari Sugawara's goal which was the first goal for Southampton in the Premier League season. Hence, Lallana will play a key role for Southampton, who are trying to improve their performance after facing three defeats in the league.