Since the departure of Che Adams at the end of his contract, a new striker has been top of the list for both the manager and also the Saints supporters, now it seems that the gap up front is about to be plugged and the signing could be announced as early as today.

The man in question is a man linked a few months ago, Ben Brereton-Diaz whose parent club is Villareal in Spain although he spent a successful loan spell in the second half of last season where he scored 6 goals in just 14 games, a strike rate per game which if repeated next season would see him well into double figures, somewhere around 14-15 goals.

The 25 year old Chilean who was actually born in Stoke on Trent has a lot of experience in England, 213 Championship games for Nottingham Forest & Blackburn earned him a move to Spain last summer, but he failed to take off and he was loaned to Sheffield United were he blasted his way back with 6 goals and an assist, good going for a side heading to relegation.

According to footballfancast.com who quote Fabrizio Romano, one of the more reliable journalists for transfer rumours, Saints have agreed a deal at somewhere around £7 million for the striker who is able to play either down the middle or as an out and out winger.

Wages were not a problem with his salary at Villarreal only being around £40k a week.

Romano also said that personal terms are "on the verge of being agreed" with the contract "set to be signed soon" and Brereton-Diaz set to travel to Southampton to complete the move.

The question though is where Russell Martin intends to play him, at Blackburn he was mainly played out wide where he was described as having incredible work rate and an ability to track back as well as score goals.

Although he played as a centre forward back then on occasions, it was the exception rather than the norm, but at Sheffield United he was played down the centre with devastating effect.

It will give Southampton options both in the centre and out wide and from this perspective he is a Russell Martin type player.

Photo: Action Images

andywelsh added 10:01 - Jul 29 Very pleased about this signing. I have rated this guy since he played with Adam Armstrong at Blackburn. He definitely knows where the net is and proved last season that he can score goals in the premier league. This could be a brilliant bit of business and an upgrade on Che.
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Bowlercow added 10:24 - Jul 29 He scoring rate at Sheffield translates into 16 goals for a whole season If it also makes a strong partnership with AA then happy days
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highfield49 added 10:58 - Jul 29 I think this could be a very astute signing if it comes to fruition. I've read comments elsewhere about Saints lack of ambition and unwillingness to spend big on players, as though the money spent on Sulemana, Onuachu etc hadn't already limited the funds available. In this case I'm delighted to see investment in a potential match winner with a decent goal scoring record. Brereton-Diaz for me every time, compared to the likes of Broja for three times the outlay and proven inability to hit a cow's arse with a banjo. I'd also be surprised if the Ryan Fraser transfer saga wasn't now totally on the back burner.

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Colburn added 12:19 - Jul 29 A good potential signing, he’s high energy and has an eye for goal, knows Armstrong and perfect age. I don’t think we’re unwilling to spend a certain level of fee, but I want us to be brave enough to get the right players rather than mess around or we end up with panic buys over the top as with the likes of Onuschu and Sulemana, the latter though still has promise. I hear we’ve allegedly had another bid for O’Riley rejected by Celtic. If we don’t get him then spend around the same money on a panic buy on someone not as good, then we haven’t learnt from January window 18 months ago. Being stuck with overpaid signings is the last thing Saints fans want to see again, hence I hope we don’t mess around with our main targets up front as we did before.

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JoeEgg added 13:08 - Jul 29 Agree with Colburn - O'Riley looks just the type of player we need - go the extra mile and secure a player that just might keep us in the PL. As for Brereton-Diaz - anybody has to be an improvement on Che!! I think any Club that thinks Adams might just be the answer to their striking problems is in for a massive disappointment - my Scottish friends will certainly endorse that!

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