The rumour mill is turning again as we head into the final fortnight before the contract bonus's are paid and the transfer window can open in earnest and it seems Southampton have their eye on the German Champions for the next addition.

Saints are said to be prioritising a central defender in this transfer window and they have their eyes on Bayern Munich's Chris Richards, as you can imagine by the name, Richards isn't German, he is American and he has been with the German giants since 2019 when he joined Bayern's youth set up.

Since then he has struggled for game time in their Bundesliga squad, in the season just gone he made just a fleeting appearance off the bench before heading to TSG 1899 Hoffenheim on loan, there he played the majority of games in the starting line up, but firstly a foot injury and then a hamstring meant that he was restricted to just 3 appearances in the final 14 games of the season.

In 2020/21 he had also spent time with Hoffenheim in the second half of the season.

At 22 the 6ft 2 Central defender is at a crossroads in his career, can he realistically break into the Bayern Munich side or does he need to move to get first team football having proved himself at Bundesliga level and also with the USA national team where he has been capped 8 times.

It seems that he is keen for pastures anew and Saints along with Crystal Palace are said to be interested in his signature.

He can play either side of not only the centre of defence but also as a full back and from that perspective he can slot into a back three with ease.

From the style of play he very much suits the way that Ralph Hasenhuttl wants to set out his sides, both in a flat back four or with a trio in the centre with wing backs, but the issue again as has been the case over the past few years is his lack of experience, with barely 35 Bundesliga appearances to his name, he is not the wise old head that Saints need in the back line at the moment.

He could arrive at St Mary's either on loan if Bayern feel that he could break through into their side with a little more experience or on a permanent move, if it was a permanent deal then his vale is said to be about £7.5 million, but his stock has increased after his loan spell at Hoffenheim and that could push up the price a bit.

Photo: Action Images

derbydog added 12:23 - Jun 15 You’re still banging on about end of June bonuses delaying signings. There are plenty of transfers happening now with contracts signed now and announced now. They just don’t start until July 1st. Simples!
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saintlee added 13:05 - Jun 15 No ! No ! No! We need an experienced centre back. No more young kids. We need leadership on the pitch not someone with potential who we may be able to flog for a few extra quid !!!
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landsdownsaint added 16:10 - Jun 15 We need an experienced central defender too get Salisu etc too the next level of which he’s more than capable of , my worry is Ralph & Semmens see Jack Stephens as the the player that’s gonna help them
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JoeEgg added 21:03 - Jun 15 So he cant realistically break into the Bayern Munich side - but apparently he can break into our squad! Sounds just like the player we need to repeat the mistakes of previous summers. Next one Nick please.........
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redwight added 10:07 - Jun 17 Another potential signing to set the heart racing.
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