£15m man could leave already but Southampton want replacement first

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Southampton will not let Adam Armstrong leave until they have a replacement secured as Chris Wilder’s Middlesbrough enquire about the Premier League forward, as reported by the Northern Echo. 

With the new season now just a couple of weeks away, both Boro and Southampton look worryingly short of options up top.

Middlesbrough have just two senior forwards at their disposal; 19-year-old Josh Coburn and the far-from prolific Duncan Watmore. Andraz Sporar, Leon Balogun and Aaron Connolly have long since departed, while Uche Ikpeazu and Chuba Akpom are no longer part of Wilder’s plans. 

And if Armstrong was to head north, joining a play-off seeking Middlesbrough side on loan, that would leave Ralph Hasenhuttl with just the one number nine – Che Adams – ahead of August’s Premier League opener away at Tottenham Hotspur. 

Will Southampton let Adam Armstrong join Middlesbrough?

Any lingering hopes Southampton might have had of luring Armando Broja back to St Mary’s – either permanently or on a temporary basis – appear to have gone up in smoke. And, with a paucity of other options available to Hasenhuttl, the Saints are understandably reluctant to let Armstrong go before a replacement is brought in. 

“Every club is after players who can make a difference,” Wilder said over the weekend. “And who can score 20 to 25 goals. 

“We have to be creative. We will be competitive and we are looking around. There is a huge gap at the top of the pitch.

“We need a squad with depth and quality, especially at the top of the pitch. That gets us where we want to be, which is in and around the top of the division.”

The Echo add that David McGoldrick opted to return to his East Midland routes with Derby County rather than reunite with his former Sheffield United boss in the north east.

Newcastle misfit Dwight Gayle, meanwhile, appears to have priced himself out of a move to the Riverside. Those eye-watering £40,000-a-week wage demands will have that effect. 

But with Middlesbrough seemingly targeting a striker with a proven track record in the Championship, you can see why Armstrong is on Wilder’s radar. He scored 28 times in the second tier for Blackburn Rovers in 2020/21 after all.