Southampton fans will be getting excited now about the prospect of Premier League football returning to the South Coast very soon, pleased with their club's transfer activity so far this summer.
The major statement buy that stands out from their recent business is the capture of former Blackburn Rovers hero Ben Brereton-Diaz, who Russell Martin and Co will hope can fire in some vital goals to help the Saints stave off the dreaded bottom three positions.
The newly promoted outfit won't be done there with attempting to bolster their forward ranks, however, with a bid already pushed back for one target who would really give the Saints more flair in attack.
Southampton pushing to sign £15m Liverpool man
As per The Athletic's David Ornstein, Southampton have had a bid in the region of £15m turned down for the services of Liverpool gem Fabio Carvalho.
The ex-Fulham attacking midfielder, who dazzled on loan in the Championship with Hull City briefly last campaign, has been on the radar at St. Mary's for some time, with Southampton trying to snatch Carvalho from the grasp of the Tigers back in January, before the second tier side were ultimately successful in their pursuit.
Now, a move looks to be back in motion for the South Coast outfit, but this could be a tricky one to get over the line, owing to the fact the highly regarded Portuguese forward has impressed new Reds boss Arne Slot this pre-season by scoring recently against Manchester United.
Moreover, Liverpool would want much more than the speculated £15m Southampton have put on the table, as per Ornstein, with Martin's men needing to brashly splash the cash in order to win their desired target.
What Carvalho can offer Southampton
The report states that Saints are unsure about how much they will 'push' to sign the Premier League player but if they can secure a deal, it would be another captivating move.
Carvalho has more than proven himself in the EFL with the likes of Fulham and Hull, with his golden spell at Craven Cottage winning him a move to Anfield, and so he will want to hit the ground running at St. Mary's if signed, to finally prove himself in the top division.
Helping himself to an impressive 29 goal contributions from 56 second-tier matches to date, the electric 21-year-old has also impressed in the division above on occasion, with three goals mustered up from only 17 appearances in the elite league.
Games played
20
14
Goals scored
9
6
Assists
2
1
Shots*
1.8
2.5
Expected goals (xG)
4.98
6.07
Scoring frequency
192 mins
185 mins
Big chances missed
2
5
Big chances created
4
3
The £40k-per-week ace – as per Capology – could well end up forming a deadly duo with Brereton-Diaz if he goes onto sign on the dotted line for the Saints, therefore, with both players in question in fantastic form for their loan sides last season.
The adopted Chile international would fire in six goals for Sheffield United from only 14 Premier League contests, even when Chris Wilder's men were bereft of confidence and rooted to the bottom of the standings.
Carvalho could get even more out of the ex-Blackburn centre-forward subsequently, with two assists notched up last season from 20 games, and eight assists managed during his last full campaign for Fulham when supplying the likes of Aleksandar Mitrovic for chances galore.
Jurgen Klopp even labelled Carvalho as being an "unbelievable" talent when overseeing his development as Reds boss, and with the likes of Adam Armstrong also lethal in front of goal when on his A-Game, Southampton could be dynamite advancing forward next season, which might well give them the edge in any relegation battles to follow.
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