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According to a report by The Express, new Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl wants to sign £5m-rated Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Pascal Gross during the January transfer window as he looks to steer the club out of trouble.
What’s the word, then?
Well, the south coast outfit appointed the 51-year-old as Mark Hughes’ successor last week following a dreadful start to the Premier League campaign, which had left them in the relegation zone.
He was unable to mastermind a win or any points at all in his first match in charge as Saints slipped up against fellow strugglers Cardiff City on Saturday, and they are now three points from safety and only off of the bottom of the table on goal difference.
Without a victory since September 1 and with that being their only one of the campaign so far, the Austrian will already be looking at potential signings he could make in the upcoming window, and The Express report that he is interested in Gross, who he managed at FC Ingolstadt previously.
Would he be a good signing?
He certainly would be.
The 27-year-old has established himself as one of Brighton’s best players since signing for them in the summer of 2017, scoring eight goals and providing a further eight assists in 48 appearances in all competitions, as per Transfermarkt.
The German has all of the attributes to succeed under Hasenhuttl again at St Mary’s, but the 51-year-old surely has two major hurdles to overcome if any New Year move is to happen.
Firstly, while The Express report that Gross is valued at £5m it is hard to see that being the case, and given the impact he has had and the fact that his current contract doesn’t run out until 2022, the Seagulls would surely demand at least four times the said amount to even consider a sale.
In addition, the Austrian would have to convince the midfielder to move away from a club where he is enjoying his football and his clearly valued by the club and the fans, with no guarantees that Southampton will be a Premier League club this time next year.
In that respect it could come down to how good his relationship is with Hasenhuttl and how much he enjoyed playing under him at Ingolstadt previously.
