Shea Charles has finally got his Premier League wish.
Applauded at the full-time whistle of Southampton's 2-0 victory in the EFL Cup versus Colchester United, with Charles surprisingly named among the substitutes, it did feel like a farewell lap for the Northern Irishman in Essex.
He will be fondly remembered for his ability to smash home a screamer when his team desperately needed a moment of magic, with Charles now wanting to kick on with his fledgling career even more, as he irons out all the final details of a £30m move to Fulham.
Now that this is move is advancing quickly, Southampton will have positions in mind all across the pitch that they want to strengthen in, with another midfielder joining the group an expectation, you would assume.
Will the Saints use the Charles cash to sign a midfielder?
Strangely, Tonda Eckert has plenty of midfield options he can fall back on, even with Charles departing.
He has Caspar Jander, who is injured currently, but he is more than capable of filling the Charles-shaped void, when performing at full fitness.
Alongside the promising German, Eckert also has Flynn Downes and Cameron Bragg centrally, with the youthful Romeo Akachukwu - who scored against Colchester - capable, too, of starting in the middle of the park.
Still, with both Bragg and Akachukwu inexperienced, and Jander subject to his own summer interest, do not be surprised if some of the Charles cash is splashed out on a new central midfield body.
Links have gone cold in recent weeks with the likes of Josh Mulligan from Hibernian, with Mulligan now even being looked at by Genoa of Serie A, but it wouldn't be a shock to see some fresh midfield names be linked to St. Mary's, when Charles' switch to Craven Cottage is finally confirmed.
There are other positions on the pitch that could do with further reinforcements, away from the much-talked-about midfield ranks.
The other positions they could look to fill
Indeed, all the Southampton spectators that took in the 2-0 win at Colchester on Saturday afternoon would have been pleased with the final result, but they would have been left disappointed with Ben Brereton Diaz's no-show display in the Essex sunshine.
He failed to register a single on-target effort at the U's goal, with many Saints fans left with the feeling - at the full-time whistle - that the goal-shy Chilean must be moved on the summer, despite Eckert's assertions that the ex-Blackburn Rovers marksman is a "very good" striker on his day.
Divin Mubama looks to be one attacking face that will be entering the building soon for Eckert and Co, with a loan move from Manchester City whirring into motion, but will this be the only striker foray Southampton sign off on this summer?
Other links have suggested that the Saints are keen on Louey Ben Farhat from Karlsruher as a bold roll of the dice option from the Bundesliga, and another striker purchase does make sense, as Cameron Archer is now being linked with an exit to Wrexham.
Moreover, Southampton have reportedly been looking at Jaydan Kamason, who is a teenage right-back on the books of Manchester United, with question marks clearly in the air about Mads Roerslev, after an injury-disrupted 2025/26 season.
Evidently, based on all these rumours, the promotion chasers are far from done this summer in the chaotic transfer market, with some more sales expected, alongside some more eye-catching incomings.
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