Southampton should ‘hike the price up’ for Romeo Lavia amid reported transfer interest from Chelsea, according to journalist Dean Jones.

The Lowdown: Lavia signing

In July, it was announced that Saints had secured the permanent signing of the 18-year-old starlet from Manchester City.

The Daily Echo’s Alfie House reported that the south coast club had paid an initial £10.5m for the Belgian, while Sky Sports’ Lyall Thomas confirmed an overall package of £14m. However, it has also been claimed that the Premier League champions have included a £40m buyback clause in Lavia’s Southampton contract.

On transfer deadline day, Chelsea made a shock last-minute £50m bid for the youngster, despite the player having moved to St Mary's just a few weeks prior.

The Latest: Jones’ claim

Jones believes that Southampton should follow in Everton’s footsteps in the way that they dealt with Chelsea’s interest in Anthony Gordon, which involved massive transfer valuations.

Speaking with GiveMeSport about Lavia, the transfer insider claimed: “A £50 million offer is obviously a big deal. There’s no doubt that if you make an offer like that, then you’re going to retain interest going forward.

“If you’re Southampton at this point, you just hike the price up and put silly numbers out there, and if they want to sign him then fine, do what Everton did with Anthony Gordon and see what happens.”

The Verdict: Huge talent

At just 18 years of age, Lavia has already established himself as one of the most talented holding midfielders in the Premier League.

The Belgium under-21 international has averaged an 88.4% pass success rate in the top flight this season, along with playing two long balls, making two interceptions and winning 1.4 tackles per game (via WhoScored).

He duly ranks among the top four among Ralph Hasenhuttl's squad for all but the latter of those metrics, a sign of his importance to the cause even at an embryonic stage in his career.

With Chelsea interested in the youngster, who has been described as having ‘precocious’ positioning by The Athletic’s Jacob Tanswell, Southampton could most certainly slap a hefty transfer valuation on the midfielder’s back, especially given the Blues’ £50m bid for a player signed by the Saints two months prior for just £14m.