As things stand, Southampton have four strikers going into the 2018-19 season under Mark Hughes, but if Tuttosport are to be believed, the Welsh manager isn’t quite happy with what’s at his disposal.
According to the Italian newspaper, Southampton are still fighting it out for Andrea Petagna, currently contracted to Atalanta in Italy.
The 23-year-old is said to not only be a target for the Saints, but also for SPAL in Serie A, who are looking to bolster their frontline after managing to stay up last season.
Petagna, on paper, is anything but a prolific striker, scoring just six goals in 39 appearances last season, but what he lacks in finishing, he makes up with his size and bringing others around him into play, assisting teammates nine times.
At around 6’3”, the forward could be a decent addition to the squad if Hughes doesn’t see a future for Sam Gallagher at St Mary’s next season, after the 22-year-old spent the last campaign on loan at Birmingham.
The first claims of this date back to June 28th, when TuttoMercatoWeb reported both Wolverhampton and Southampton were after Petagna, with Atalanta asking for around €10-12m.
Since then, it’s mostly been between SPAL and the Saints, with the former of the two already making an offer a week ago.
That has seemingly yet to be accepted, perhaps as Atalanta wait and see if Southampton try and trump them.
