Real Betis are interested in Southampton forward Sofiane Boufal, with the Saints keen to ‘ditch’ him from their squad.
That’s according to Estadio Deportivo, who say the Spanish club are keen to add a left-sided player to their squad before the end of the transfer window.
That position is the only one in their squad where they feel they are lacking and so they are exploring the market for options.
Boufal is one that has come up, with Southampton keen to get rid of him as he is not part of manager Ralph Hassenhuttl’s plans.
They were ‘willing to ditch him’ according to the website and willing to take a little less than €5m for his signature, despite paying just over €18m for him four years ago.
Betis, though, ‘would be trying’ for a transfer that would be a ‘gift’ to the player, who is in the final year of his deal with Southampton.
They’re looking at an operation similar to the one they secured with Martín Montoya, which saw his current club earn a future profit based on ‘variables and bonuses’.
That suggests they are eyeing up a free transfer for Boufal as opposed to being willing to pay Southampton’s asking price, which means there’s probably some negotiating to do before this one gets over the line.
