Mario Lemina is set to leave the Saints for Premier League rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers and Maritimo man Vukovic could replace him at St Mary’s.
Southampton have chosen Josip Vukovic as the replacement for Mario Lemina should the Gabon international seal a move to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the next 24 hours, as reported by the Sun (7 August, page 50).
With the transfer deadline looming large, Lemina is running out of time to seal a move away from the club he joined from Juventus in the summer of 2017.
The former Marseille enforcer has been conspicuous by his absence for The Saints in pre-season with Ralph Hasenhuttl opening the door for him to seal a move away from St Mary’s.
Fortunately, Wolves are still in the mix despite links with Manchester United and Arsenal coming to nothing. SoccerLink claims that Lemina is set to move to Molineux on loan with an option to buy.
But who will Southampton sign to replace a man they paid a club-record £18 million for two years ago? Well, The Sun believes that Maritimo’s Vukovic is the top target – with his price-tag set at just £1.5 million.
The tough-tackling Croatian shone in Portugal last season amid links with Benfica and Chelsea. And, given that he has just 12 months left on his contract, Maritimo are under pressure to sell.
Now, Southampton have made a habit of intelligent, bargain signings over the years and the 27-year-old Vukovic could be an inspired addition if he fills the void created by Lemina’s impending departure.
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