Back in January this would have looked a good bit of business for Saints, however at the moment it looks a lot lot less so.
The news that Rickie Lambert is apparently close to signing for Liverpool for a fee reported in some quarters to be as low as £4 million and in others as high as £9 million would in normal times be seen as a savvy move for a player who at 32 is nearing the end of his career.
Indeed this is just the sort of deal that ex Chairman Nicola Cortese would have been doing the proverbial snapping of hands off, in fact if some reports are right back in January he was doing just that with Sam Allardyce about to lose both hands.
But now given that just about all our squad are linked with one club or another, although financially this makes perfect sense as well as in footballing terms giving us a big fee to improve the squad, it feels like a kick in the teeth.
Personally I still think it is a good move, but not this week or next month, the board need to realise that as much as this is good business there is the morale factor in place should he go before the World Cup.
Rickie has been a great servant to the club, of that there is no doubt, he is one of its legend's and one of the most popular players in its history, it would be a difficult pill to swallow for many fans if he were to leave this summer, but that pill is made harder by the World Cup in Brazil, Saints fans want to see Rickie and indeed Luke Shaw and Adam Lallana go as Southampton players, most are coming to terms that we will lose a player or two this summer that we would rather hold on to, but first we want to enjoy them playing for their Country in a major tournament as Saints players.
None more so than Rickie Lambert, we have travelled every yard of these last 5 magical years with him and his going to the World Cup is something all Saints fans feel is a shared thing between him and us, if he goes as a Liverpool player rather than a Saints one, then that would leave many with a sour taste in their mouth's
Perhaps Ralph Krueger does not realise that, he has not spent enough time around the club yet to get a real feel for our soul, but CEO Gareth Rogers has been here for longer, he should surely realise what supporting Rickie in Brazil means to Saints fans and indeed what it stands for, if as has been said we do not have to sell players, then there is no reason why this deal should not be done after the tournament in Brazil is over.
Perhaps it is Rickie who is keen to see the deal go through, after all he is from Liverpool and is a lifelong supporter of the club, perhaps he feels that if he waits then they might not want to do the deal in six weeks time, for him perhaps he is nervous that if the deal isnt signed sealed and delivered he might miss the chance to complete what has been a five year period he could never have dreamed about, but the fact still remains that if he goes he will break a fair few hearts in Southampton.
Perhaps it is too late to stop it now, but if it isn't the Saints board should stand back and put it on hold, this is about more than making a few million pounds, its about firstly showing intent, from the boards perspective they need to be in control of the situation and give out an air of confidence to the fans, but secondly realising that the supporters need to have hope and they need a bit of a feelgood factor in what is a traumatic time, having one of our own in Brazil is a major part of that