Southampton Striker Linked With a Loan Move Away From the Saints
By Aditya Kumar
A certain Southampton forward has been linked with a loan move to a recently relegated former Premier League team.
The striker is none other than Saints’ Adam Armstrong and he has recently been linked with a loan move to Championship side Watford.
As per the Sun, the Hornets want to sign the 25-year-old Englishman on loan as they look to bounce back and get promoted to the top flight, the first time of asking.
According to the Sun:
"WATFORD are interested in taking Southampton striker Adam Armstrong on loan.Championship rivals Middlesbrough are also keen on the former Blackburn Rovers man but both face a battle in convincing him to drop back down a division.via thesun.co.uk"
Adam Armstrong’s Missed Opportunity at St. Mary’s
After scoring 28 goals in 40 games for Blackburn Rovers in the Championship in 2019/20, Armstrong earned a move to Southampton for a fee of around £15 million.
However, he failed to make the impact many Saints fans expected him to. He did score on his debut, netting against Everton at Goodison Park. For the rest of the season though, he could only add one more to his tally.
Ralph Hasenhüttl preferred loanee Armando Broja, recently linked with a move away to West Ham, and Che Adams over him in the second half of the season.
This is why Southampton are willing to let the English man go out on a loan. However, they do realise that they will have to sign another forward before that.
Southampton in Search of a Replacement
While Southampton are ready to let Armstrong go, the striker himself is not very keen on a dropping down to a lower division.
As reported by the Sun,
"Another stumbling block to a deal for Watford and Boro is Armstrong’s reluctance to drop out of the Premier League.The Saints would not loan to another top flight club as they are seen as direct rivals.via thesun.co.uk"
Southampton were also linked with Armado Broja, the Chelsea loanee, but the £30 million asking fee from the Blues was way too high for the Saints to entertain.
This is not the first time Watford has been linked with a move for Adam Armstrong also. They tried signing him last season but last out to the St. Mary’s outfit.
As per the Sun Back Then:
"WATFORD are trying to tempt Blackburn into selling Adam Armstrong by offering cash plus striker Andre Gray.The Hornets have joined Southampton in the chase for the in-demand striker.via thesun.co.uk"
Watford will need a new striker this season with Cucho Hernandez and Andre Gray leaving them and Emmanuel Dennis generating interest after a fantastic debut campaign in the Premier League last season.
Next. United join race for Matthijs de Ligt: Where’s the best fit?. dark
And who better to sign than a striker who has proven himself in the Championship, before?