Southampton fans wouldn’t seem much excited about the latest reports claiming Dutch centre-half Wesley Hoedt is arriving at St. Mary’s in the next few days as it implicates in a huge way that their star defender Virgil van Dijk might finally be on his way out of the side after months of speculations.
The Serie A defender is touted by many to replace his Dutch compatriot now, although Southampton has maintained their take that Van Dijk isn’t for sale despite wide interests from top Premier League clubs like Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea. This could also mean a positive move by new manager Mauricio Pellegrino who wants to retain Van Dijk’s services by getting in more quality players.
Although Hoedt is yet to undergo a medical at the club, Lazio sporting director Ighli Tare has more or less confirmed that he is leaving. Speaking to Italian broadcaster Premium Sport, Tare said, “He requested to be transferred. He wants to be a starter in England and will be transferred to Southampton in the near future. He has had a positive experience here in Rome. I wish him all the best.”
It wasn’t very difficult for the Italian club to let him leave, as although impressive, Hoedt hadn’t really managed to break into their first-team squad on a regular basis. He has been handed a good 21 games last season but most of them have been from the bench and he was also excluded from the first eleven of Lazio’s 3-2 win over Juventus in the Italian Super Cup recently.
Nonetheless, the 23-year-old has exhibited maturity and patience way above his age and is touted by many to be one of the Dutch football’s brightest. This marks Southampton’s second statement signing of the summer after getting in Mario Lemina from Juventus earlier. Following two good seasons in the league where the Saints managed to finish in the top half of the points table, the side is slowly removing their tag of being a selling club.
Sky Sports claim that the south-coast club had offered an initial fee of £15.5 million for him but Lazio has finally agreed to a deal that would cost somewhere in the region of £17 million. It was only earlier this year that the young centre-half made his national debut following last season’s impressive stint.
Pellegrino shouldn’t have many problems adapting him to the league as the 6 ft 3 1⁄2-inch player possesses the physical and technical attributes to cope with the English game. Not only does he excel in aerial duels but also possesses a brilliant vision from the deep field. But can he replace Van Dijk completely?
