Southampton have offered São Paulo R$2.5m to sign defender Welington now, despite already announcing a deal for him to arrive next year.
That’s according to Ge Globo, who report that Southampton will need to offer the Brazilian side more if they want the player this summer instead of next year.
Southampton announced on Friday that they had completed a double deal for São Paulo duo Welington and Juan, with both signing pre-contract agreements and set to join the club in January.
The former has been linked with a move for weeks, with it explained in Brazil that Southampton had moved quickly to wrap up an agreement with the defender before then trying to push his arrival to this summer.
That would require paying a fee to São Paulo and talks have been ongoing on that front, with Ge Globo now reporting that the Saints have made an initial offer of R$2.5m. That works out at around £300,000.
That figure is not enough to convince São Paulo to sanction a move at this moment in time, with the Brazilian side considering the bid as a low one given, he’s the starter in their first team.
Southampton therefore need to up their bid, perhaps even considerably, if they are to get the defender ahead of January.
Instead, he will be heading to England next year as planned, with Juan set to move to Turkey with Göztepe, who are owned by the same group that control Southampton.
