2 knock-on effects to Southampton if Chelsea or Arsenal seal Romeo Lavia deal

Interest in Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia has ramped up in recent days, with both Arsenal and Chelsea interested in acquiring the youngster’s services.

Lavia is one of many Southampton players who have been circled around by Premier League teams after the Saints’ 11-year period in the Premier League came to an end last month.

Despite being a part of a relegated side, Lavia was a shining light among the dark cloud which hung over St Mary’s for a majority of the season, having come to many people’s attention following his goal in a 2-1 victory against Chelsea last August.

How would the sale of Romeo Lavia benefit Southampton?

With many resigned to Lavia moving on, here are two knock-on effects a sale could have on Southampton as new manager Russell Martin begins his rebuilding job.

Re-investment

It has been reported by Football Insider that Arsenal are in advanced talks having reached a ‘verbal agreement’ with the Belgian international.

As we saw with Burnley last campaign, the sale of a handful of assets to the club isn’t necessarily detrimental if the following recruitment is nailed to perfection.

If Southampton are to challenge for promotion at the first time of asking, a successful restructure of the club is paramount.

With the managerial situation now finalised, Martin will look to recruit players for his midfield who are of a similar style to Lavia with both skill and tenacity, but the high price tag also enables the 37-year-old to eye up an array of signings to add experience into what was the joint-youngest Premier League squad last season.

Changing the core

As previously mentioned ,Southampton are one of the pre-season favourites alongside fellow relegated sides Leicester and Leeds.

However, with the highly rumoured exits of both Lavia and captain James Ward-Prowse, Martin would then lose two of the players within the spine of the starting eleven.

Whilst its clear a rebuild is what’s needed, Saints fans may need to be patient at the start of the season as many new recruits and players who stick around get used to a new philosophy and environment.

The sale of Lavia could open up opportunities for the likes of club academy graduate Will Smallbone who spent last season on loan for Stoke City and impressed towards the tail end of the season, in particular collecting three assists in 90 minutes in a 5-1 away win at Sunderland.

Recently, Smallbone admitted that he would wait for official clarity on the club’s next managerial appointment before deciding on his future, and now with Martin taking over the reins it may be that he becomes a regular this season due to already being at the club and his added knowhow of the division.