Josh Sims signing for AFC Totton recently is a reminder that not every Southampton academy product is destined for greatness.
For all the James Ward Prowses of the world, there are also those unfortunate few who fail to make the cut long-term in the Premier League while situated on the South Coast, with Sims now a National League South player ahead of the new season.
Dynel Simeu is another forgotten former member of the esteemed Southampton academy, having failed to ever make a senior appearance for the Saints.
He has been on the quite journey since leaving his boyhood employers behind in 2024 as well...
Simeu's rollercoaster career post Southampton
Despite lining up for the U21s 22 times, Simeu would never go on to make the grade in the men's ranks on the South Coast.
He would, instead, have to make do with several lower league loans to spread his wings in a senior environment, with brief loan stints with Morecambe, Tranmere Rovers, and Carlisle United greeting him.
Unfortunately, in 2024, the inevitable arrived at Simeu's door, as he was released by the Saints, having failed to ever make a first team appearance.
Nobody would have predicted his next destination, though, as he ended up venturing out to Albania to link up with the unknown first division side KF Teuta.
Again, that spell was short-lived, much like his temporary loan moves away from St. Mary's, with just a year on the books of the Albanian outfit, before he returned to more familiar shores with Oldham Athletic.
He impressed at Boundary Park, too, with two goals collected from 13 league appearances for the League Two giants, seeing Oldham boss Micky Mellon state that Simeu was a player the club "really believe in."
Amazingly, despite plying his trade in the EFL's fourth tier up until June this year, he could be featuring in the illustrious Champions League very soon, as yet another new employer falls onto his varied CV.
He could play in the Champions League
Quite a few ex-Southampton players have gone on to dine at the exclusive European table post calling St. Mary's home, with Dusan Tadic reaching the Champions League semi finals with Ajax in 2019, scoring a sublime nine goals in the prestigious competition along the way.
Tadic competing in such a reverred competition isn't the greatest shock, though, as he displayed a Champions League level calibre on the books of the Saints.
It's a shock that Simeu could soon strut his stuff in the Champions League, however, considering he never featured in the senior ranks on the South Coast, but that reality looms on the horizon.
Indeed, Simeu is now playing for The New Saints in Wales, with the Cyrmu Premier outfit set to play in a tense two-leg Champions League affair with Sabah FK this week, who originate from faraway Azerbaijan, in the first qualifying round of the entertaining tournament.
The New Saints are delighted to announce the signing of defender Dynel Simeu! 🙌
— The New Saints FC (@tnsfc) June 5, 2026
The 24-year-old centre-back spent time in both the Chelsea and Southampton academies and most recently represented Oldham Athletic âš½
Read more 👉 https://t.co/AbA6l30qjV#TNSFC pic.twitter.com/UlaxskMbfR
It's unlikely that TNS will be able to beat a whole wrath of opponents, before the group stages are decided, bit it will be a surreal occasion for Simeu if he is selected to start against Sabah, nonetheless, having had to pick up the pieces from his Southampton release in 2024 and go again.
Having played in Albania, though, briefly, this unusual tie shouldn't faze him, as the one-time Saints academy prodigy tries to help his new team beat the Azerbaijan Premier League champions on their own soil, and then back in Wales, to advance further in a competition that is typically only reserved for the elite.
Add us as a preferred source on Google