Southampton supporters in the Transfer Tavern are very much looking forward to the rest of the summer transfer window following the news that manager Mark Hughes has penned a long-term deal with the club.
The ex-Stoke City and Wales boss took over at St Mary’s back in March following the dismissal of Mauricio Pellegrino, and was tasked with keeping the Saints in the Premier League after what had been a disastrous campaign under Spaniard Pellegrino. And the 54-year-old did just that by guiding the team to crucial victories over Bournemouth and Swansea City to eventually finish in 17th place in the Premier League table, three points clear of the bottom three.
Subsequently, there are many expectant and excited Saints supporters in the Tavern at present, several of whom are likely to be intrigued by recent reports suggesting that Matej Vydra could be on his way out of Derby County this summer.
And with the South Coast outfit having seriously struggled for goals this term, Hughes should seek to join the race for the £7.2 million-rated ace (as per Transfermarkt) in a bid to solve Southampton’s glaring attacking problem.
Ultimately, while the Saints were reasonably solid at the back this season, they were pretty hopeless going forward in netting just 37 goals in their 38 Premier League games, with Charlie Austin, who missed 14 games over the course of the campaign, finishing as joint top goal-scorer alongside Dusan Tadic with just seven goals.
And with the likes of Manolo Gabbiadini (five), Shane Long (two), and January signing Guido Carrillo (none) failing to consistently produce the goods, it’s pretty obvious what area of the squad Hughes has to address this summer.
Significantly though, their goal-scoring woes wasn’t through a lack of creativity, as Squawka state that Southampton created 322 chances in the Premier League this term, which was the eighth highest in the division, and second-best (behind Bournemouth) outside of the top six clubs.
Thus, the opportunities appear to be there, it’s just a case of putting them in the back of the net. And that is Vydra’s speciality.
The 26-year-old finished as the Championship’s top goal-scorer this season with 21 goals for Gary Rowett’s Derby, which adds to the 16 he scored for Watford back in 2014/15 to help them win promotion, as well as the 20 he netted for the Hornets two years earlier.
Yes, there have been some tricky spells to note, not least his tally of just three goals in 23 Premier League games for West Brom back in 2013/14, but Vydra’s attacking qualities are exactly what is missing at Southampton – Austin also has that predatory instinct, but they simply cannot rely on him due to injuries.
As such, with Leeds thought to be keen on a move for the 26-year-old, Southampton must seek to join the race in a bid to finally solve their evident goal-scoring woes.
Southampton fans… what do you think? Let us know!
