TalkSport insider Alex Crook has dropped a big claim regarding the future of Ryan Bertrand at Southampton.
The England international, valued at £9m on Transfermarkt, is out of contract at the end of the season and the club have looked as if they were intent on keeping hold of him, having been locked in negotiations for some time before he becomes available to leave for free this summer.
However as heard on the TalkSport Gameday podcast (43:20), Crook believes that Bertrand will indeed leave the club this summer and revealed the reason he and the Saints haven’t been able to come to an agreement to keep him at St Mary’s up to this point:
“I think Ryan Bertrand now looks certain to leave which is strange because that deal was close to being tied up, but I think they’re haggling over the length of contract. He wants a three-year deal, they’re only willing to give him two. I think Brandon Williams will probably come in from Manchester United as his replacement.”
TIF Thoughts on Alex Crook’s comments about Ryan Bertrand’s future
Crook’s words do make the move sound like a real possibility, particularly with the mention of Williams, someone who they have been looking at since the summer transfer window, giving the hint that the club are already potentially lining up his replacement.
The problem with Southampton here is that they are set to lose him on a free transfer, which isn’t going to give them a lot of wiggle room to bring in that replacement, having to resort to a loan which might see them through the 2021/22 campaign, but could give them problems beyond that.
Should Southampton keep Bertrand?
Yes
No
Ralph Hasenhüttl has complained about a lack of investment in the past, and letting Bertrand go for someone who is still relatively inexperienced at Premier League level doesn’t sound very progressive or indeed ambitious.
In other news: ‘Let’s not kid ourselves’ – TalkSport pundit makes big claim over key Saints player’s future