Southampton have seen a significant number of new players make their way to the south coast club throughout the summer transfer window.
Interestingly, all of the Saints’ new signings this summer have been rather young.
The youngest of those summer recruits is Romeo Lavia, who, at the age of 18, cost the St. Mary’s outfit an initial fee of £10m.
With three games played in the Premier League, the teenager is one of the three outfield players to have played every minute of action for the Saints.
This shows just how highly rated he is by Hasenhuttl, who clearly has enough belief and confidence in the youngster to keep him on the pitch.
Despite the significant transfer business that has already taken place at the club, the time now before the window closes could not only see the Saints continue their track record of signing young players, but also give the Southampton manager the chance to form a dynamic midfielder duo alongside Lavia.
Last week, it was reported that Southampton were leading the race to sign Manchester United’s 21-year-old midfielder James Garner, who would reportedly cost £14m to sign.
As a young midfielder that has worked through one of the Manchester club’s youth ranks, this mirrors the journey that Lavia has been on to get him to where he is.
During his second loan spell with Nottingham Forest in the Championship last season, the Englishman managed to end the campaign with a higher average for key passes per game (2) than any other player at the Midlands club, showing how much of a tricky customer he can be in the middle of the park.
Southampton’s new Belgian currently has a higher pass success percentage (91%) than any other player in Hasenhuttl’s squad that has started all three league games so far this season, so having him in the team next to Garner could potentially allow the United midfielder to deliver more key passes than he was last season at Forest.
Hailed as an “exceptional” player by Paul Robinson, Garner was an unused substitute for both of United’s two opening league games of the season, which suggests that a potential move to St. Mary’s where he could be more likely to play regularly, as Lavia is now doing, could be a tempting prospect for him.
With all of that in mind, securing a deal for the Englishman would not only top off what has been a productive transfer window from the Saints but it could also give the club a new exceptional midfield pairing at St. Mary’s.
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