Oriol Romeu is one of a number of Saints players whose contract is up in the summer of 2023 and he has again spoken of his love for Southampton FC and his desire to come to an agreement regarding his contract.
Oriol Romeu has had something of a revival at St Mary's over the last couple of years, in season 2018/19 he found himself overshadowed by Pierre Emile Hojbjerg and that pretty much continued in the following season when after starting the opening dozen fixtures, he would start only one of the next 17 with Hojbjerg now the dominant force in the centre of Saints midfield alongside James Ward Prowse.
At this stage his future at St Mary's looked in doubt and as we entered lockdown many thought that at 28 years old his days were numbered and he would perhaps depart in the summer.
But when the season resumed in June and it was clear that Hojbjerg would not sign a new deal and wanted to jump ship for Tottenham Hotspur, Ralph Hasenhuttl decided to play the man who wanted to stay and not the one that wanted to go, Romeu was soon restored to the side as number one choice and it was Hojbjerg consigned to the bench.
A raft of consistent good displays that helped propel Saints up to 11th in the League seemed to assure that he would stay the next season.
But he would face competition with the arrival of Ibrahima Diallo, but although the new man never let anyone down when he played, Romeu kept up his standards and insured that the chances of being ousted from the team were slim.
Romeu has again been in great form this season and is in line for player of the year, but as he approaches the final year of his contract in the summer, talk within the Saints fan base is all about hoping that he signs a new deal.
Back in January when asked about extending his stay he had this to say:
"I am enjoying it here and I am feeling good, physically. I think this is perhaps the best period of my career and I have found some habits here that are really helping me," he said at the time.
"I want to carry on here, we'll see how far we go and we'll see what happens with the contract. I still have a year and a half to go so I try not to think of it too much but I am enjoying it. I want to go year by year to see how far we can go."
Although Nathan Tella has put pen to paper on a new deal since Sport Republic took over at the club, Romeu has yet to open negotiations as he nears completing his 7th season at St Mary's since joining from Chelsea for £5 million back in the summer of 2015.
In that time he has started 178 Premier League games plus another 29 as sub and in all competitions he has so far amassed, 207 starts and 38 sub appearances, a total that means he can be qualify to be considered a truly club legend.
The only real downside to his tenure at St Mary's is that he has not scored many goals, only 7 in all competitions.
All in all though he must be in line to be one of the best signings the club has made since their return to the Premier League 10 years ago, pound for pound his £5 million fee is peanuts when we consider the contribution he has made to the success of the club in that time, I can't think of many who can match him when you take into account the number of games played over this period.
If he signs a new deal at the club then most Saints supporters would be delighted at the news and I would say would be urging the club to get on and tie him in for the next few years.
Turning 31 in September at least a two years deal would be acceptable, although personally I think he should be granted three years, thus making him eligible for a testimonial at the end of it, these days few reach the generally accepted 10 year qualifying period at the same club and the fact that he could well do that is testament to his service in a Saints shirt.
Indeed off the pitch he has immersed himself in the culture of the area and likes to find out about the culture and the history etc, recently he turned up to watch AFC Totton play and engaged with the supporters whilst watching the game from the terraces.
When asked about the contract situation and the possibility of a testimonial he had this to say to media outlet Hampshire Live:
"I am very far off a testimonial,"
"I don't know, it is something we will have to see when we get there. In football, everything changes so quickly. Even if I tell you now that I will be here for the next three years, I cannot be 100 per cent sure of that. We will see how it goes year by year and what position we are in.
"I love being here, I love the club and I love everyone around, but also the club has sometimes different objectives or you as a person might think it is time to move on. We will see where we get to when we finish the season and we will try to make the best decision for both sides."
So very coy from the Spaniard, but there should be little read into that, certainly most Saints fans I speak to would be delighted to hear that he has signed a new deal, but due to his age it may be in his interests financially to see out the terms of this contract before signing the next one, although I don't think money is the true issue here, the club also has to consider the financial aspect as does the player.
In the meantime we just want to see Oriol finish the season as he has started it, in fine form and driving Saints on towards a top 10 finish