Southampton were considered as one of the prime contenders to sign Norwich City‘s attacking midfielder James Maddison. However, they seem to have lost the race as it is all but certain now that the 21-year-old will ply his trade for Leicester City in the upcoming season. The Foxes have wrapped up the deal and the deal is said to be worth £20m.
The midfielder had a breakthrough season with the Canaries as he managed 15 goals and 11 assists which helped his side finish 14th in the table. If not for him, things could have been much worse for Norwich.
Southampton will be aware of the fact that they are in need of creative and attacking players as they struggled to score freely last season. They were just able to hang on in the Premier League by virtue of winning against Swansea City and Mark Hughes will be aware that this team is in need of some attacking output as they managed 37 goals in their entire campaign.
Maddison would have provided them with some sort of relief as the midfielder is known for his defence-splitting passes and has the knack of scoring goals every now and then. However, Hughes will now have to look at other options and we look at three possible replacements he can go after.
Jack Grealish
The Aston Villa midfielder has been in demand after a season where he helped his side reach the playoff finals. Given Villa’s financial crisis, it is likely that they will have to part ways with their star midfielder and a move to Premier League looks imminent now. However, the Saints need to move in quickly for him as Tottenham Hotspur are currently leading the race to sign him.
Mario Gotze
This will be a massive coup if the Saints manage to get him. The fallen German star has indicated that he is keen on a move to England and Southampton will gladly take him up with open arms. However, the race to sign this World cup winner is going to be intense as a host of Premier League clubs are being linked to him.
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Adam Lallana
A reunion will certainly warm the Saints faithful if they get their former captain back. He has played 260 games for Southampton and he made his name at St. Mary’s. He has struggled with injuries and game time at Liverpool in the last one year. He will bring in the much-needed experience which is currently lacking with the Saints and he still has the ability to fire all cylinders if he manages to keep himself fit.
