Southampton never had the luxury of keeping their seasonal campaigners with them for long, particularly in the recent years. They have turned into more of a feeder club which generates and moulds next gen superstars who eventually desert their ship in search of greener pastures. Although it looked like Jose Fonte would beg to differ, he failed to do so and moved to fellow Premier League outfit West Ham United earlier this week.
Claude Puel’s side once again face a crisis of filling the void created by one of their key performers. The Saints had been off form lately, prior to their win over Leicester City in the league, and just when the scenario started to incline in their favour, they had to deal with yet another catastrophe when their captain fantastic drew the curtains on his long-standing relationship with the club. However, things need to go on, for they always seem to get around such scenarios.
Amongst the reports that have been surfacing, it has come to our notice that Puel is preparing to acquire the services of Spartak Moscow’s central defender Serdar Tasci to cater to the needs of his side. The 29-year-old has been out of favour at the Russian outfit for quite some time now, having being loaned to Bayern Munich earlier this year and it is believed that there is a paramount need to bring him to the St. Mary’s.
Southampton’s formidable centre-back Virgil van Dijk is also out injured (reportedly for three months), and Maya Yoshida urgently needs a proven figure to partner him at the heart of the defence. Although Puel wants to meet his short-term objectives by roping Tasci under his ranks, Spartak Moscow are in the favour of letting him leave for a transfer fee of around £4 million, considering that his contract at the club expires in the summer of 2017 when he becomes a free agent.
Irrespective of the method that is to be used, signing someone like the former VfB Stuttgart defender because of the pedigree in a defender, he needs in order to pull his troops out of the clutches of mediocrity. Although he is not a world-beater, Southampton must know that Tasci is a brand of defender who ticks a lot of boxes.
Filling the shoes of Fonte would unarguably take years, but Puel can add some respite back into his side by getting this proven comrade as they enter into the crunch stages of the season.
