With Napoli seemingly refusing to budge on their asking price of 25 million Euros for Manolo Gabbiadini, Saints are reported to be turning their attention to Spain.
Apparently Saints have told the Italian side that their offer of 16 million euros plus another 3 million in add ons is their final offer and if it is not accepted then they will turn elsewhere.
That elsewhere seems to be Spain where they will look to Real Madrid's Mariano Diaz instead, the 23 year old who has been at Real since 2012 has struggled to break into the squad which is understandable given the talent that the Spanish club have, but he has scored for Real Madrid B for fun and that got him promoted to the first team squad this season.
So far he has mde only a handful of league appearances and been used mainly in the cups where in the Spanish cup he has scored 4 goals in 4 games.
Now he is reluctantly accepting that he may have to leave Real for first team opportunities although last month he was saying that unless it was an offer he cant turn down he will stay.
But Saints could be that offer although whether it will be a straight bid or a loan is yet to become clear, certainly a loan could suit all parties with Diaz getting a chance to show his talents on a big stage on a regular basis and Saints fillng a gap whilst they consider more permanent options in the summer.