Southampton could now lose a “brilliant” loan player during the January transfer window, according to a key transfer update surrounding Russell Martin’s treatment of him.
Southampton’s January transfer business
Saints look nicely poised to be in the promotion picture in the Championship come the end of the season, with Martin’s side fourth in the table currently. While there is a 10-point gap between themselves and second-place Ipswich Town, there is still a long way to go in the campaign.
January signings could increase Southampton’s hopes of making a speedy return to the Premier League, and they have been linked with a host of players recently. Leeds United defender Charlie Cresswell is one player who has been backed to complete a move to St Mary’s in the near future, while West Brom midfielder Tom Fellows is another player who has been seen as a rumoured transfer target.
There is also the risk of Southampton losing some talent in January, however – something that could impact negatively on their promotion chances – and a worrying update has emerged, in that respect.
Southampton could lose Mason Holgate
According to Football Insider, Southampton loanee Mason Holgate could now return to Everton in January, with the Blues keen on bringing him back to Goodison Park.
“Everton want to recall defender Mason Holgate in the January transfer window due to a lack of action at Southampton, sources have told Football Insider. Holgate has only started four games for the Championship club since joining on a season-long loan.
“Everton want the centre-back to be playing more regularly and are keen to terminate his loan and then find him a new club in January. The Merseysiders allowed the 27-year-old to join Southampton on a season-long deal in the summer window after he fell out of favour with Sean Dyche. But Holgate has featured sparingly for the promotion chasers, playing just 289 minutes of action in five total appearances.”
This suggests that Everton are not impressed by the way Martin has used Holgate this season, in terms of his lack of playing time, and it could lead to a premature exit in the process. While the Englishman has struggled to make an impact in a Saints shirt since arriving on a temporary basis back in the summer transfer window, he is still someone who it would be a blow to lose when it comes to the squad depth at the manager’s disposal.
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In fact, Martin himself praised Holgate earlier in the campaign after one strong performance, saying: “Mason gave us a brilliant performance today.”
The hope is that Everton’s stance changes over the next month or so, allowing him stay put until next summer, but they can look at his lacking minutes as an excuse to bring him back, so Southampton could end up having to bring in an alternative loan option in January.
An injury to the likes of Jan Bednarek or Taylor Harwood-Bellis could suddenly heighten the need to have Holgate around, so keeping hold of him would be the far more preferable option.
