Southampton made a second attempt at a deal for Royal Antwerp’s Mandela Keita yesterday, before then focusing on Chelsea’s Lesley Ugochukwu.
That’s according to journalist Sacha Tavolieri, who reports that the distance between Southampton and Antwerp proved to big to bridge and so the move was abandoned.
The Saints have been linked with a move for the midfielder for some time, with a first offer made earlier this week.
It was then explained how his agent appeared to be hard at work drumming up interest in his client, with Southampton not the only option for him.
The Belgian side weren’t impressed either way as it seems it was rejected, with the journalist reporting that the two sides ‘were too far apart’.
That led Southampton to move for Ugochukwu instead, perhaps seeing the Chelsea man as an easier target to get than Keita at this point.
Tavolieri certainly seems to think so, adding that the move has been described as a ‘short-term decision’ because of the failure to agree on a deal for Keita. In other words, Southampton have gone for the loan because they can’t get the permanent, long-term solution they want.
