Ross Stewart will now be weighing up his next options after walking away from Southampton this summer.
Indeed, after bouncing back from injury setback after injury setback to score eight times last season in the Championship for the Saints, the Scottish striker decided to walk away from St. Mary's frustratingly, as a new extended deal failed to be agreed.
This is a blow, as he was the perfect back-up option to bounce off Cyle Larin, but the South Coast titans look set to clinch the £9m signature of Lewis Dobbin, who can play up top, and he's just fresh off a red-hot ten goal campaign with Preston North End.
Also capable playing down the wings, the hope will be that Dobbin goes on to be remembered as a lavish buy who is an immediate success, rather than a high-profile disaster.
There must be a temptation on Southampton's end, in a bid to further bolster their centre-forward personnel, to go rifling through the bargain bin for a standout free transfer pick-up, after splashing the cash, with one experienced EFL marksman now available for nothing.
The £0 striker now available
West Bromwich Albion has now revealed that Josh Maja won't be staying put in the Midlands heading into next season, bringing an 81-game stay at the Hawthorns to an abrupt close.
Released alongside Daryl Dike, you would imagine that both strikers will have EFL suitors keen on their services, as both strikers - despite being injury prone - are accomplished Championship finishers on their day.
Maja, in particular, could catch Southampton's eye, as a smart and shrewd addition to the squad to make Stewart's exit feel less obvious.
After all, the Nigerian forward is a very similar style player to the Scotland international, with both strikers in question prone to a long stay in the treatment room, but when they're fit, they're deadly poachers who very rarely need a second invitation to score.
He would be a great Stewart replacement
Amazingly, Stewart would miss 149 games for the Saints and his country through injury across his last four campaigns.
When he was fit, though, the Irvine-born attacker definitely knew where the back of the net was, firing home 12 strikes, from only 1770 minutes of action.
Maja has suffered from similar wretched luck when it comes to niggles and injury difficulties, missing 44 games across his final two seasons at the Baggies, but it's nowhere near as bad as Stewart's constant problems, meaning he might be viewed as an ideal back-up option to gamble on, now that the one-time Sunderland forward is a free agent.
He has been even more lethal than Stewart in recent memory, as well, away from being more readily available, with 18 goals picked up when scanning over his numbers over the last two campaigns.
His 12 goal return from 26 games during the 2024/25 season, before he became a hassle in the treatment room, again, had West Brom in and around the second tier promotion places under Carlos Corberan, with the Spaniard even going out of his way to wax lyrical about Maja, noting that he was a "special" player in his camp.
Josh Maja that is sensational! 🤩 pic.twitter.com/TjDyJOoEhO
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) November 1, 2024
Maja wouldn't play every single game, if he uprooted to the South Coast, with Larin likely preferred up top by Tonda Eckert.
But, it's undeniable that he could prove to be a wonderful bench presence to have on side when opposition legs are tiring, with the Canadian, and the 27-year-old, potentially swapping first-team duties effortlessly, just like the World Cup hotshot and Stewart managed during last season's heartbreaking promotion near-miss.
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