Mauricio Pochettino might let a few players depart the club in January as the manager plans to add a few fresh faces to bolster his squad in the mid-season trading period, claims the Mirror.
Mousa Dembele, Victor Wanyama, Vincent Janssen and Georges-Kevin Nkoudou might be the four players heading for an exit in the winter. (h/t Mirror).
Out of the four players that Spurs are likely to offload in January, Dembele is on the other side of 30 and he is unlikely to play another season in English football while the other three still have a lot to offer at the Premier League level.
This should definitely put some of the struggling mid-table teams in the Premier League, including Southampton, on red alert. The Saints looked poised to face the drop last season after a series of poor performances but Mark Hughes somehow put their campaign back on track after taking over from Mauricio Pellegrino.
However, it has been the same old story for the Saints this season as well. With only a solitary win from their first ten games, Southampton sit 16th in the Premier League standings with seven points.
Lack of goals has been the major problem for the Saints this term. They have one of the worst scoring records in the top flight, having scored only six goals so far. Mark Hughes’ men played out a goalless draw against Newcastle at the St.Mary’s Stadium this weekend. Although they created a lot of chances and registered as many as 22 shots throughout the ninety minutes, they couldn’t manage to break the deadlock.
And that virtually sums up Southampton’s season so far. It is probably one of those seasons for the Saints where the ball just doesn’t seem to find the back of the net. However, their lack of goals this term hasn’t been entirely down to hard luck. In fact, the strikers and the wingers have had a torrid season so far, with most of them horribly out of form.
In his earlier days in the Premier League, Nathan Redmond was deemed as a player with a huge potential. Well, he hasn’t quite lived up to the expectations at St.Mary’s this season. To be honest, he has established himself as one of the most inconsistent players in the top flight. Southampton splashed as much as £16 million to land Norwegian winger Mohamed Elyounoussi from Basel in the summer but the new signing has been as disappointing as his counterpart on the other flank.
In Shane Long, Charlie Austin and Danny Ings, Southhampton have three decent strikers who are quite capable of racking up the goals. However, that hasn’t quite been the case so far this season. While Ings has contributed with 3 strikes, Austin and Long are yet to open their scoring account for the season. Even Ings has been poor with his finishing, letting the team down in the final third with some poor touches at times and squandering simple opportunities.
Suffice to say, Southampton need more firepower down the flanks to get their campaign back on track. And Spurs outcast Georges-Kevin Nkoudou could be an ideal signing for the Saints in January.
The 23-year-old winger was signed by Spurs back in 2016 after a fruitful season with Marseille where he scored 10 goals across all competitions, including 4 in the Europa League. However, he was used sporadically as a substitute in his first season in the Premier League, which did not allow him to settle down and was loaned out to Burnley in the following season where he made only 8 appearances.
Well, he doesn’t have a prolific goalscoring record in his relatively young career. Nkoudou, who has represented France at all youth levels, is primarily a left-winger by trade who has the ability to operate on the right as well. The 23-year-old is blessed with explosive pace and silky dribbling skills. A lively presence in the wide areas, Ndoukou likes to use his energy and pace to embark on powerful runs down the flanks. The Frenchman likes to cut inside from the left and is never hesitant to put his foot through the ball.
Nkoudou might prove to be the ideal feeder for the likes of Shane Long and Danny Ings with his crossing ability from the wings. Furthermore, he will be the ideal man to provide cover and competition for Elyounoussi, who has been largely underwhelming so far.
That said, Southampton definitely need to play their cards in the winter transfer window to boost their chances of survival in the Premier League. Signing Georges-Kevin Nkoudou might be a bit of a gamble but he might add that much-needed energy to their attack.