Southampton will “quickly understand” what type of player they are signing in Mislav Oršić, although the Premier League “won’t be easy for him”.
That’s according to his former coach Nenad Bjelica, who has nonetheless backed the player to shine on the South Coast.
Southampton are reportedly close to a deal for the Croatia international as they look to strengthen Nathan Jones’ squad this month.
They initially opened talks about a transfer earlier this week but a deal appeared to be unlikely when Dinamo were left unhappy with the Saints’ first bid.
That was resolved yesterday, with a report explaining that they had finally ‘relented’ and Oršić was having a medical at Southampton before completing his move.
Whether he can prove to be a success for the Saints moving forwards remains to be seen, particularly as he is yet to enjoy a successful spell in any of Europe’s top five leagues.
“The English will understand very quickly what kind of player they have bought,” he told Germanijak.
“But I would not underestimate Southampton, it is a very respected English club. It is the strongest league in the world and to get there is a great achievement, especially at the age of 30.
“If these sums are correct of five, six million plus some bonuses, for a player of his age, that’s a very good amount and a big transfer.
“It won’t be easy for him, because it’s a physically strong league, he’ll have to adapt quickly, because he has a fight to stay and everyone expects his contribution in that fight.
“However, we’ve already seen Oršić on the big stage, in big matches, mostly right now against the English, therefore I believe that the adaptation will be quick and that Oršić will quickly show that he can play at that level.”
