As Saints look to trim their squad ahead of the new season, one of those leaving will be midfielder Shea Charles , but Russell Martin sees his long term future at St Mary's and therefore it will only be a season long loan.

Shea Charles is set to join Sheffield Wednesday on a season long loan, he will be playing under ex Saints assistant manager Danny Rohl who was Ralph Hassenhuttl's right hand man when he first arrived at the club.

This is not a surprising move, Charles is a flexible player and was used not just in his natural position in the centre of midfield, but also as a central defender, but with the arrival of both Lesley Ugochukwu and Mateus Fernandes in the past week, the midfield is a little bit congested and that is also the case in the defence.

However this is not the end of Shea Charles as a Southampton player, but part of his continuing development as Russell Martin explained to the The Daily Echo

"He is going to Sheffield Wednesday and that would be a brilliant loan move for him I think.

"He did great in his first senior season. I think because of how much money we paid for him, there's a feeling with some people that it wasn't a great season.

"He played a big part in helping the team achieve promotion in his first season in men's football. It doesn't often happen, in a position that's really important.

"He will benefit from going somewhere and trying to play every single game because otherwise it just stops his development to be a back-up player really.

"He's a long-term signing for the club and he will now help Sheffield Wednesday a lot with a really good coach who has had a relationship with the club."

Martin continued: "There are certain things you can only learn through playing in games that really matter in front of big crowds.

"They'll have that at Hillsborough. It will be really good for him and good for us as a club long-term. I think it suits everyone.

"Shea had the final choice on where to go. There was more than one club interested in him from the Championship and from other leagues.

"The final decision was with Shea. Me and Rasmus Ankersen spoke about it a lot and then they spoke to Shea's agent. I spoke to Shea.

"His brother plays there as well so I think that's a big reason. He spoke to Danny and was excited about the way they're going to attack this year and their signings.

There will be a level of expectation to deal with in front of a big crowd and I think it's perfect for him at this stage in his career."

The Southampton manager is right, Shea Charles did play a big part in Saints promotion winning season, football is a squad game, it is not just about your starting XI, it is what you can bring off the bench, that does not just mean coming on in the latter part of the game and scoring goals, it means getting on and grafting, closing out games and making sure that winning positions aren't turned into draws and draws into defeats.

Shea did that last season, he started 15 games and came off the bench on 17 occasions and played his part, it is hard to remember that he was only 19 when he joined and Russell martin is right, he now needs to continue his development and needs a season where he will be first choice, rather than a squad player and struggling to get game time, hopefully when he returns he will have that experience that will enable him, still aged only 21 to be a vital player in the Southampton squad.

Saints and Sheffield Wednesday could confirm the loan imminently but it is unclear whether he will be registered to face Leeds United on Friday evening.

Photo: Action Images

Flamingbankers added 09:30 - Aug 23 Good potential, should improve his understanding and skill so it's a good move all round. All the best at Wednesday Shea.
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Monksway added 10:20 - Aug 23 Really hope he avoids injury and becomes a first choice for Danny Rose. If he does, like Will Smallbone and Nathan Tells, this will really help his development.
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halftimeorange added 10:32 - Aug 23 I thought Shea had visibly improved his game towards the latter part of last season. I hope that his replacements in our squad are actually better than him. Only time will tell.
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SaintPaulVW added 08:34 - Aug 25 Wise move for everyone. Good young player and needs to play regularly to get even better.
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