Saints are believed to be looking at what options they have for Gaston Ramirez in the final year of his contract.

Gaston Ramirez has been an expensive folly for Saints, but the writing was on the wall for the Uruguayan almost from the day he joined.

In essence Ramirez was an ego signing for former Saints Chairman Nicola Cortese to show that he could spend big money, the big question though was where Ramirez would fit in to the way that Saints were going to play, Ramirez was a passer of the ball and he needed someone who could run the channels and latch on to his through balls, but in Rickie Lambert Saints didn't have that type of player.

The end result was that Gaston never really fitted into the side and given that all he could do was pass it ten yards sideways with no outlet forwards, the truth was that Steven Davis could do that just as well but could run and tackle more.

Of course there have been moments of glory for Ramirez, he is not a poor player, his attitude is good, but the situation he is a good player in the wrong sideand because of his wages it is hard to move him on.

Saints tried to do that in the transfer window, indeed Ronald Koeman has looked hard at the player to see if he can fit him in, but the reality is Saints have a lot of options in midfield and Gaston is far down in the pecking order.

So there are only two options left for Gaston, the first is a loan move to a Championship side, that would save some money for Saints, but with his wages rumoured to be well over the £50k a week mark Saints would struggle to find a club willing to pay 1/5 of that as a contribution, let alone a loan fee especially given his recent injury record.

So Saints have to consider terminating his contract as they did with Osvaldo, this is a far from cheap option though, in simple terms club and player have to come to an agreement financially that sits between. the player sitting out a very lucrative contract or receiving a lower amount to walk away.

When Ramirez does leave it will end a period that was very costly to Saints in their first year in the Premier League, Ramirez and Osvaldo plus Vegard Forren & Mayuka cost the club somewhere in the region of £35 million plus substancial wages and between them they did little for Southampton Football club, it was an expensive folly that ultimately lead to Katharina Liebherr questioning how the club was being run and taking control of it on a more personal level.

Gaston Ramirez though like Mayuka & Forren have done nothing wrong, only Osvaldo was the architect of his own downfall in that respect, perhaps questions should be asked about these four signings and why so muc money was wasted, but I think Katharina Liebherr already knows the answers hence the restructuring that took place 18 months ago.

It's now time to finally be able to move on and that perhaps means Ramirez moving on.

I think finanically for Saints the best thing would be a move to a Championship club till January then they could attempt to move him permanently in the January winter with his contract only having six months to run, then the player would be more ameniable to taking what would be a massive drop in wages to go to a club permanently.

Photo: Action Images

DPeps added 10:54 - Sep 5 My head says you're right that we should move Gaston on, but my heart says keep him. Tadic and Gaston are both inconsistent and injury-prone, it's just that Gaston has been more unlucky with injuries. Might be worth keeping Gaston to step in when Tadic tails off
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Zambucco added 11:08 - Sep 5 I saw a video of him training with the squad, be looked happy and fit. I think that lining him up with Mane, Jay, Long and Tadic, would effectively showcase his talents. Maybe rose tinted Alex's are being written, but I'd love too see him get a decent run, add I'm certain he can finally show his worth.
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Ddobsy added 11:41 - Sep 5 I agree with the guy's above. We are a different team now, with the pace of Mane and Jay-Rod, so plenty of options to pass to. Since Lallana left we've lost the ability to break down stubborn defensive teams and Gaston has that ability to see a run or change the shape of an attack. The challenge for Koeman is to make it work. Tadic is a traditional winger at the moment and Davis is getting on. I'd try Gaston until January.

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RogerToye added 12:16 - Sep 5 well swap him i believe Tottenham are looking for saint's... Poch may want him Gaston for Andros Maybe or give him a cup spot... needs to play we haven't seen the best of him yet . if we let him go for a free then why not do that with Clyne wanyama and everyone else with 1 year left he was expensive need some VFM
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IWOZTHERE added 13:14 - Sep 5 Never saw enough of him to form an opinion but attitudewise he's acted like a model professional with no signs of the disruptive behaviour we could almost expect.He looks happy enough (so would I be on that money) so I'd keep hold of him for a while. He needs to be 'showcased' anyway to get decent money, the season's young and so is he. He just might get a run in the side and show his value to us or others.

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1970 added 13:18 - Sep 5 Shame for Gaston but he is not up to the premier league, if we played a high press like we did under Poch then maybe if we were short but we don't play like that, he is physically overwhelmed by the prem, and mentioning the wages of all these players none of them will be earning what you would expect because quite simply they are not playing or involved the first team squad, if he was that good he would of been snapped up coyr

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saint68 added 19:08 - Sep 5 Had the good fortune of spending some time with Gaston and he is a very polite and humble man. Things never went his way and was very unfortunate with injuries, And unfortunately for him and us neither benefited from his undoubted talent. If by chance he stays and gets a run in the team I'd hope he uses that opportunity to show his true worth.
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halftimeorange added 20:17 - Sep 5 Anybody given a red for kicking Jan Vertonghen (or any Spurs player) does it for me! Seriously, though, I remember Nigel Adkins raving about his ability but, after mid 2013-14 he got injured. He's still only 24 and we lack height in midfield. Gaston is six feet tall. I think he should be given another go and I would have liked to see him in Denmark. He might have provided something different because on the night we were crying out for it.

4

BoondockSaint added 20:22 - Sep 5 Give the man a proper chance! When he first came here you could see him make a great pass and then look up to be shocked no one was there to receive it because none of our players at that time had the football sense he has. Then he was loaned out to Hull, who are not exactly Barca when it come to passing. So you can't judge him on his time there. OK, he made one mistake at Hull getting red carded for mouthing off to the ref , but other than that he has be the type of professional Saints can be proud of. Did he whine to the press? NO. Did he get in fights with team mates? NO. Did he ask for a move? NO. Did he get a mystery "stomach virus"? NO. An when he scored a goal, he gave his shirt to a young fan of the opposition-Giving the young lad a great memory, and boosting the Saints image on TV and in the league. But now we have the type of players that suit his talents, so lets give him a fair chance and if it works great, if not, that's OK too. The team should at least show the patience they have with Yoshida, J-Rod, and Long.

6

bstokesaint added 21:18 - Sep 5 Loving the positive feedback from the majority of other Saints' fans. I agree totally Gaston has what it takes to be a top player. He had some pundits purring on his ability to hit a killer pass when he first joined us. If he wants to play and can stay injury free he'd be like a new signing. For God's sake don't pay off another lucrative contract. This one is avoidable.

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Donaldbane added 22:41 - Sep 5 When we first signed Gaston he ripped Villa apart in a 4-1 home win. I remember thinking that this guy was different gravy. Surely that player is in there somewhere?! I say keep him, if anyone can get that level out of him again it's Koeman
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TygerUppercut added 22:43 - Sep 5 I remember a stat in lalanaas last season that for minutes on the pitch gaston actually created more assists , chances & goals ! I think we should stick with gaston we now have the pace up front to latch onto his passes last year we lacked a final ball or something out of nothing surely gaston is worth 1 last try when we've already carried his contract this far
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StRipper added 02:14 - Sep 6 There's got to be something fundamental about why no manager after Adkins has rated or played him. Its almost like a conspiracy because whenever I've seen him play he makes something happen and is exciting. I've always been a big fan of Gaston but its hard to know what condition he is in, its been so long since we've seen him play. I probably have a list a theories I've scratched my head about! 1) the injuries he has had have actually affected him. He's not the quickest and maybe that is a problem if he's lost some mobility too. 2) there is something about his play/effort/pace etc that for some reason just makes him a non starter for getting in the team. To the extent that on balance his presence unbalances the team. He has only ever been effective through the middle 3) To play him we would need to put him in central midfield, where we could also play Tadic, Mane, Ward Prowse, Clasie there too to name but a few. Too many to drop down the ladder for a player who is on his way out anyway. Still, will be sad when he goes

2

BoondockSaint added 02:46 - Sep 6 StRipper- Tadic on the left and Mane on the right I think is our best set up(see last week) So that would give him a shot-but hopefully not as a sub with only 5 mins left! I guess we all like him because he appears to be a class guy in a sport where most players are spoiled toddlers.
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GeordieSaint added 08:59 - Sep 6 If he didn't get a look in when we had to break down that Danish team then he will never get a game.
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lemmsy added 10:11 - Sep 6 Let's keep him coz I like singing ooh gaston Ramirez, much better than the shit dusan tadic ooh ooh
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StRipper added 10:50 - Sep 6 Hey BoondockSaint, I prefer Mane through the middle to be honest. Gives him more scope to threaten. JRod can play well from the wing. But as you say, if we play Mane and Tadic wide, that leaves Davis, JWP, Clasie, maybe JRod, Juanmi or even Long or Reed to play behind Pelle. Probably only JRod is nearing that level of weekly wage currently paid to Gaston. Considering that against the fact that Gaston has only a year left and too many perceived flaws plus isn't Dutch enough for Koeman then he is doomed. In addition, giving JWP and Reed represent profit for Saints commercial model so is a reason to prefer them. And even Reed can't buy and appearance and I rate him highly too

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SaintBrock added 11:26 - Sep 6 No point in terminating his contract, we have two cup competitions coming up and Koeman will want to rest key players without jeopardising the results. Ramirez may not be the sort of physical bully boy that perhaps is the style best suited to cup football especially in midfield. Tadic and Mane look injury prone to me so if we can protect them from cup style competition Ramirez especially may be able to provide a little bit of quality that will unhinge MK Dons types of clubs. Yes, he may be injury prone himself but at least he has had good exposure to PL level football with Hull and is a full international so he must be able to look after himself by now.

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StRipper added 23:47 - Sep 7 I wonder though if Ramirez also has a significant bonus that pays out simply for an appearance. That could answer a lot of questions
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BaselSaint added 15:16 - Sep 9 I think his style of play is more suitable to Saints now. I agree we should give him a try and def keep him for the squad.
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