Southampton’s Jose Fonte claims he has asked Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to make a summer switch to the South Coast club, and if reports are to be believed Arsene Wenger might let him leave.
Reports throughout the media over the last few months have suggested that Wenger has grown tired with the Ox’s consistent injury problems and failure to improve as a player (via The Independent). This obviously doesn’t sound like Wenger, who is known for sticking by injury prone players, but if true then Southampton could be a potential destination for the winger.
Speaking at an event in London, Fonte explained that he’d spoken to the Ox about a potential return to Southampton, but he was very professional about things, explaining that not much could be said due to Chamberlain currently being an Arsenal player.
“I know how good he is. And I am not going to lie: we talked about it [returning to Southampton],” he said, at the Just-Football FootiEmoji event in London (via Goal).
“I asked him, I spoke to him, I am good friends with him. I want the best for him but what can I say? He’s an Arsenal player.
“He’s happy there. He has the quality to be a star player at Arsenal but what I mean is we would love to have him back.
“If we want to put a team out to fight for trophies, to fight in European competitions, why not?”
While it seems highly unlikely that after all this time Wenger would be willing to let the Ox go, these sorts of stories and players going public with transfer rumours like this often mean there is at least a little truth behind them.
We really could regret letting the Ox go too soon, as he’s fully capable of blossoming into a world class player. Most of his shortcomings seem to be mental, and if he can overcome those issues as he matures, then he could really be a top star.
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It seems very unlikely that the Ox will leave this summer, but if he does, it seems like Southampton is a real option. Jose Fonte would certainly welcome him back, and it would arguably be a real coup for Ronald Koeman’s side.
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