Journalist Ben Jacobs has insisted that Southampton boss Nathan Jones is an admirer of Ryan Fraser amid talk of him being available this month.
It has been a pretty disastrous spell for Fraser up on Tyneside, which saw him join as a free agent after refusing to play for Bournemouth once football resumed mid-pandemic, with the winger registering just nine league goal involvements in the north-east.
Given that Newcastle are now looking to turn themselves into top-four regulars, it appears as though Fraser is being pushed out the door, and that could lead him to move back down to the south coast with the Saints rumoured to be interested.
Southampton have struggled for goals and creativity this season, with their top scorer being James Ward-Prowse on five league strikes – two of which came last weekend. Fraser, therefore, could perhaps add some dynamism in the final third along with vast Premier League experience, with 173 games under his belt thus far.
Jones is clearly not content with his current squad as Jacobs has revealed on the Loaded Mag YouTube channel that the Welsh boss holds an interest in Fraser this month.
He said: “Fraser, I think, in particular, is a very sellable asset. We know that he was open, if not pushing, for a move during the summer, so that’s one, with him being only 28 as well, that I think could definitely get done.
Would Fraser be an upgrade for Southampton?
Yes!
No!
“We know that Bournemouth are one of the clubs that have been tracking him. Nathan Jones at Southampton is another fan as well, so maybe they’ll [Newcastle] be able to get something done on that one sooner rather than later.”
TIF Thoughts on interest in Fraser…
It would be an interesting move from Southampton to take a punt on someone that’s been very much out of favour for a long time now, with Fraser having started just three league games this season – and that’s under a manager he’d worked with before in Eddie Howe.
Another huge worry if Southampton were to sign Fraser would be his alarming injury record since being on Tyneside, as he is thought to have missed 99 days through injuries, which isn’t what the Saints need in their battle against the drop.
Fraser may need to be back closer to home on the south coast for him to show his true talent, because at 28, he still has a lot to give the Premier League, as not too long ago, Howe claimed he was a ‘goal creator‘ – although those words don’t appear to have resonated with Fraser given his severe lack of attacking threat this season.