Money first, because that is where this gets awkward for Southampton.
Red Star Belgrade (FK Crvena zvezda) joined the chase for Petar Ratkov on Tuesday, according to a Football Italia report citing Sky Sports. Dinamo Moscow have already declared their interest. That makes three, and Southampton hold much the weakest hand of the lot.
What he is actually worth
Start with what Lazio paid. Around £11m went to Salzburg in January, on a deal running to 2030, and that figure will be the floor in every conversation the Italians have this month.
Transfermarkt now rates him at about £8.5m. Half a season of fewer than 300 Serie A minutes will do that to a valuation.
So there is a gap, and somebody has to close it. Lazio want their outlay back, the market says he is worth less than they spent, and whoever bridges that fastest walks off with the player.
Dinamo Moscow tried to bridge it early. They were reported at the start of the month to have gone as high as around £13m, which is well above Transfermarkt's figure and well above what Lazio handed Salzburg.
Southampton are not paying £13m for a fourth striker. Nobody at Staplewood is pretending otherwise.
Where that leaves Saints
Here is the uncomfortable part. Southampton banked £26m from Fulham for Shea Charles this month, with another £4m in add-ons to come, so the cash exists.
Spending a slice of it on a forward when Cyle Larin has just started the season up top, Divin Mubama arrived on loan on the 11th August and Cameron Archer is still on the books would be quite a decision.
Saints Marching set out what this week could bring at St Mary's, and the exits looked more pressing than the arrivals.
Red Star will not outspend Moscow either. What Belgrade offers instead is home, Europa League qualifying and a shirt every week, and none of that shows up on an invoice.
That is the bind. Southampton cannot beat the Russian offer on money, and Belgrade wins the sentimental argument without spending a penny, which leaves Eckert hoping Ratkov wants English football badly enough to ignore both.
Saints Marching pointed out this month that clubs must pay more to prise fringe Southampton players away. Funny how quickly that logic runs the other way when Saints are the ones shopping.
Verdict: Best guess? A cut-price deal only lands if the other two walk away first, and neither of them looks like doing that any time soon.
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