This January, Russell Martin may add these three new players to his Southampton squad, which is vying for promotion.
Russell Martin’s chances of getting promoted back to the Premier League as Southampton manager were looking bleak after the team lost four consecutive Championship games out of five games played in October. The 37-year-old even expressed concern about his job just a few months into his new role.
Fortunately for the Saints and Martin in the dugout, things have improved since that rough patch of play. The South Coast team has won four of their last five games in the second division, moving them up to fourth in the league standings.
In order to help his team in the upcoming crucial months as they attempt to secure promotion, Martin will still want to add new players to his Saints squad in January. This will give his squad more strength to potentially compete with Leicester City and Ipswich Town, who currently hold the coveted top two spots.
These are three ideal signings that might occur at St. Mary’s in January.
Maximilian Entrup first
When the transfer window reopens, Southampton is reportedly in for Entrup. The 26-year-old forward has drawn interest after lighting up the Austrian Bundesliga with his performances for TSV Hartbeg this season.
With 11 goals in as many games across all competitions thus far, the current TSV Hartberg attacker has become so good that the 6′ 1″ forward was called up to the Austrian national team.
Entrup is another player Southampton may consider adding to strengthen their attack, which may be weakened if Che Adams leaves the Saints. He would provide another expert shooter to the team to challenge top scorer Adam Armstrong.
In a recent match against Wolfsberger AC, Hartberg’s number 11 showed unwavering composure in front of goal, requiring just four shots overall to net a brace in a convincing 3-0 victory, according to Sofascore.
Entrup’s prolific goal-scoring career should help him seal a significant move abroad shortly; Southampton is one place he might call home after leaving Austria.
In January, Martin might return to his previous team and raid a player from the Swansea City roster. A deal for Nathan Wood, a defender for the Swans, was reportedly close to rejoining his former manager in a summer transfer to Southampton, but a £10 million bid was ultimately rejected.
In addition to Taylor Harwood-Bellis, the 21-year-old defender would provide Southampton with another agile presence at the back. Martin’s philosophy at St. Mary’s would be ideal for Swansea’s number 23, who is a defender who can pass out from the back with skill.
According to Sofascore, Wood has averaged 53.4 accurate passes out from the back per game under new Swans manager Michael Duff this season.
Moreover, Wood’s name this campaign has a goal next to it.
Martin may be looking to replace veteran Jan Bednarek and rival Saints captain Jack Stephens at centre back, and Wood could be a good addition to his group.
If Southampton made a move for Johnson in January, they would have to reopen negotiations for a deal that they were unable to close earlier. Martin was hoping to bring Johnson to St Mary’s this summer, but that move never happened.
All parties would benefit from the deal; under David Moyes, the 23-year-old has played just once in the Premier League this season, with West Ham’s number two frequently relegated to the bench.
The proposed deal would also benefit Southampton, as it would provide the South Coast team with another player to rely on at left-back or even center-back, where Johnson can also play. Currently, Ryan Manning is the only fit left-back in the squad.
In addition to simply relieving Martin of some of his worries regarding team selections should his Irish defender be declared ineligible for play, adding a new player would provide Manning with some competition.
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