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Great Transfer Business For Saints As Hojbjerg Departs Tuesday, 11th Aug 2020 21:03
Although the two deals were essentially separate, Kyle Walker-Peters has signed on a permanent transfer from Tottenham Hotspur whilst Pierre Emile Hojbjerg has departed in the opposite direction.
Saints have announced the signing of Kyle Walker Peters for a fee believed to be £12 million with Hojbjerg now a Spurs player for a fee that is described by the BBC Sports website as "short of Saints' £25m asking price, but well in excess of Tottenham's £15m opening offer."
That is said to be a down payment of between £17-19 million plus several add on's that couldl bring the final figure up and above £20 million.
This will please Saints supporters who have had mixed feelings about Hojbjerg, around half the fanbase saw him as a competent Premier League player, whilst the other half saw him as someone who too often came up short when it came to passing the ball and hitting the target.
Perhaps in a side like Spurs he will shine in a way he could not do at Saints, but there are few tears for his departure in Southampton tonight.
Spurs fans will say that is sour grapes, but that would be untrue, when the likes of Dean Richards went to Spurs in 2002 or Dejan Lovren to Liverpool six years ago we showed what sour grapes where when they became public enemy number 1 and abused every time they visited St Mary's.
We were aggrieved that they left under a cloud their forcing moves, but more pointedly we were annoyed that they had left us, we knew that we would miss them on the pitch and that hurt the most.
But with Hojbjerg it is different, we are not worried about his departure, we know that we have players at the club to replace him who are just as good if not better, but we also feel that we are getting the best of the deal.
Until six months or so ago when suddenly we were told he was Spurs number one target, we would have snapped someones hand off at £12 million, so to get nearer £20 million is good business.
But with Kyle Walker Peters coming in the other direction we feel we have shored up a problem position and bought a player who can truly become a player who makes a difference, Hojbjeg plugged a gap at best, KWP can truly shine for Saints.
Too often Saints supporters have berated the club for allowing players to go too cheaply, you won't find many saying this is a bad bit of business today.
Pierre Emile Hojbjerg is not a bad player, but he hasn't been a great one for Saints, he has been a good squad member who works hard but lacks the final product whether that is a killer pass or finishing himself.
Too often we have bought players and paid them too much and found it hard to move them on and had to loan them out, this has hampered our transfer dealing's, but today we have got a player off the books in a position we can cover , we have made a profit and used some of that to strengthen a problem area.
Good business from Saints and Ralph Hasenhuttl who has dealt with the situation with class, he took the decision to strip Hojbjerg of the captaincy and only use him in a bit part role after the re-start, this seemed to do wonders for team spirit and morale and more importantly we found a balance we had lacked for most of the first 3/4 of the season.
So you will find no complaints or sour grapes from Saints supporters today, only a surge in positivity that we can finally see the club on a forward path.
Photo: Action Images
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Well this transfer window looks like it’s going to be the best one we’ve had in a LONG TIME! I mean now we’ve got Walker-Peters (and really by the way he played at the restart for a bargain price seeing the fact that he was part of a team that was the 3rd best in the devision whilst the guy who’s gotten us an extra 3/7mill barely played at all!) and once Salisu does his fortnight of isolation him too, really I personally just think we need a replacement for Hojbjerg and that’s it! I mean I’m up for getting these extra wingers and defenders, but really we need to concentrate on getting a quality midfielder who can replace, if not be better than, Hojbjerg as once that’s done we’re not vulnerable in any position so I’m not against us getting more players but personally I think that the money we’ve got left (along with what we might get for Reed, Hoedt etc) we should spend on getting a young midfielder with lots of potential!
Who berates the club for letting players go too cheaply ? The Club have always managed to make huge profits on players including the two you mentioned Richards who we signed from nothing and within a year got 8m for (Absolutely crazy amount for an uncapped defender in those days) And Lovren. In very recent seasons Signing (not selling) mistakes have been made but main fault for that must lie at the door of the chop and change of Coaching staff and Changes at highest board level. Back to normal again now I believe.
Whereas before the deal I might have posted regret that we were losing yet another top player in case any Spuds fans were lurking (whatever did happen to Mil?) I can be candid now. PEH simply didn't do enough for the team and unless Jose has a particular role in mind for him that won't come especially naturally to him, Spurs fans' patience will wear thin before long.
By contrast, KWP was an absolute joy to watch following the restart. Had crowds been allowed he'd have massively felt the love. He may well move on before his five-year deal expires but we can enjoy him while he's with us.
And finally a spot of trivia - anyone remember Phil Walker, the ex-Millwall and Charlton defender from the late 70s-early 80s who played against Saints in the old 2nd Division? He's Kyle's uncle.
Shame we can’t get Ralf and Lemina to kiss and make up, then we’d have a player we've already bought and paying some wages for ready made to rotate with JWP, Romeu and maybe Armstrong (who has to be nailed on first choice out wide/middle 2 even when Djenpo fit and with Smallbone in waiting). Is McKinnie deal dead then as too expensive? If so surly time for a convo with Reed....
For once I partially agree with Nick. I think Hojbjerg represents an era of Southampton were poor management (top to bottom) and survival were the main traits of the clubs for that period. I personally think he'll come good at Spurs and it was probably (for him) the right time to move on from Soton.
What I don't agree with is the sentiment towards his contribution to the club. Yes, it's not comparable to departures in the pre-Puel era but he definitely made a decent contribution in keeping us up and ultimately bringing some accountability to the players and pride back to the fans in those very dark periods. I wish him all the best and I hope his time at Soton is remembered as a positive part of his career.
I think we definitely need to replace him. Everyone knows my position on JWP. I think he's a good hard worker but that's not enough at the elite level...you have to bring something to the table too and I'm not seeing that atm. Romeu is good but is still too slow on and off the ball. He's at best a decent squad player. Outside of JWP and Romeu, I can't really see other central midfielders in the squad who can challenge for those spots, which is worrying! What do we do if they're injured?
I personally think we should cash in on Lemina too and try and get two high-quality central midfielders. One more attacking/creative and the other more defensive and athletic. These two players will be key engines to the team and moreover strengthen the spine.
I think Smallbone can do a job too by stepping up and keeping the other players on their toes.
Also, think we need a decent left-back to cover and challenge Bertrand. I don't rate Vokins and I think Bertrand has become too comfortable the past few years.
Lastly, if we can't get the best of Boufal and Djenepo then we need to find replacements for them too. For the level of talent both players have there's a minimum level of consistency needed week-in-week-out and I'm not seeing it at the moment. If we look at Danny Ings he's come in and done the business after bedding in his first season. The reason is simple...he's a talented finisher and his attitude is fantastic!
Boufal, in particular, needs to get his head out of his arse and bloody deliver! He has no excuse playing second-fiddle to Redmond and Armstrong! If you're not able to keep players of that quality with his level of talent out of the starting eleven it means that you're not working hard enough (on and off the pitch)...End of!
He has to want to be the best and prove to Ralph, the fans and ultimately himself that he wants to succeed. If not, leave and free up the wages for someone else who wants to make the most of the opportunity.
Lastly, aside from Ings, the jury's out on our Strikeforce. I'm hoping Che Adams improves drastically from last season. I think his target has to be a minimum of 10 goals next season. Obafemi will come but he needs to start growing up and learning as much as possible from Ings and the coaching staff.
Here are some suggestions for central midfield:
Eze Eberechi (Club QPR in Championship): Attacking Midfielder - Stat (14 Goals and 8 assists). He's only 22 years old!
Joe Aribo (Clubs Rangers in SPL): Central Midfield a bit more defensive- Stats (9 Goals). He's 24 years old.
Yes - I agree with Cortese on his contribution to the club. What he does at Spuds I am prepared to move into the 'don't give a feck' category.
It is good that we have swapped one 'three letter' player for another. So much easier on here. We have now got a JWP and a KWP. So are there any LWPs around as next in the sequence??
We could appoint Linton Kwesi Johnson as official club poet then we would have a LKJ at the club and of course we used to have BWP, MLT and back in the 1970's FPM or to give him his full title Forbes Phillipson Masters
Wish him well. KWP looks a great addition. Glad it's over. Don't really care about the fee - how much have we wasted on Carrillo, Hoedt, Lemina etc. Totting those transfer fees plus wages makes £5 mill either way look like buttons.
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