Southampton and Sheffield United can sign Ryan Gauld from recently relegated Primeira Liga outfit SC Farense for a bargain £3.5 million, as reported by O Jogo.
The so-called Lions of Faro may have tumbled out of Portugal’s top flight with a whimper rather than a roar but the inevitable sale of their Aberdeen-born asset will give Farense’s bank balance a welcome boost.
Gauld was due to become a free agent this summer.
But Farense acted fast to trigger the extension clause in his contract, meaning the likes of Southampton, Sheffield United, Brighton and Brentford will now have to pay £3.5 million for a gifted attacking midfielder who produced nine goals and seven assists in 2020/21 (TEAMtalk).
That would make Gauld the most expensive export in Farense’s 112-year history.
According to the Daily Record, Southampton have been in touch with the 25-year-old’s representatives.
Gauld, meanwhile, would jump at the chance to join Scotland internationals Stuart Armstrong and Che Adams on the South Coast.
The one-time Dundee United wonderkid might never have lived up to that ‘mini Messi’ nickname but, after after years in the wilderness, Gauld is coming of age at last.
A brilliant dribbler who has scored 18 league goals across the past two seasons, the former Scotland U21 star would add some much-needed creativity to a Sheffield United side that found the net just 20 times in 2020/21.
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