While a return to Lazio seemed like the best option for Wesley Hoedt, pushed to one side by Ralph Hasenhüttl at Southampton, the move has slowly but surely developed into a nightmare.
The Dutch centre-back, while starting off adequately, has seen his performances cost his side points and cup ties of late, to the point where he was seen as the worst player on the pitch by some.
Sunday night was no different, as the Southampton loanee was thrown into the deep end against Inter due to an injury to Stefan Radu and asked to deal with the not so easy task of keeping Lautaro Martínez and Romelu Lukaku at bay.
Long story short: Antonio Conte’s side ran out 3-1 winners, and Hoedt was at fault for the 1-0, as his last ditch tackle brought down the aforementioned Argentine in the box, giving his Belgian counterpart the opportunity to wrong foot Pepe Reina from the subsequent penalty.
Gazzetta dello Sport don’t hold back their punches, labelling the Southampton man ‘the worst’ as he had yet ‘another bad night’ in a Lazio shirt.
Corriere dello Sport, down their end, give him a 5/10 (the same rating as their ‘worst’, Lucas Leiva), and explain he has now been ‘admonished and warned’, with his yellow card forcing him to miss the upcoming game against Sampdoria through suspension.
While this isn’t the end of the world in the grand scheme of things, it could be problematic for Southampton, as the Saints will have been hoping this move would allow them to be rid of Hoedt for good.
Initially sent to Lazio on loan for €1m, the Dutchman’s move also included a €6m release clause, which, judging by these performances, Igli Tare and Claudio Lotito are not going to trigger any time soon.
That means Southampton will likely have to deal with Hoedt again in the summer, whose contract at St Mary’s comes to an end in June 2022.
