Southampton are set to miss out on Mattias Svanberg with Bologna’s CEO confirming that the Premier League-linked midfielder is joining Wolfsburg in an £8 million deal, as reported by Tutto Bologna.
Just 18 months ago, the Serie A outfit wanted in excess of £20 million for the dynamic Sweden international.
But with just one year remaining on Svanberg’s contract, he was always going to be available for a much lower fee this summer. And £8 million for a player dubbed –albeit somewhat ambitiously – ‘one of the top four or five number eights in Europe’? This is the sort of bargain that doesn’t come around all too often.
According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Southampton tested the water with an initial £5 million offer back in June. But while Bologna were willing to let Svanberg go for a reduced sum, they were never likely to accept a bid quite that low.
Southampton target Mattias Svanberg heading to the Bundesliga
It is not certain whether the Saints ever considered making another approach. The speculation certainly dried up following Romeo Lavia’s £14 million arrival from Manchester City. That is despite the growing doubts about Ibrahima Diallo’s St Mary’s future.
Valencia are reportedly in talks with the former France U21 enforcer.
Svanberg, meanwhile, should officially become a Wolfsburg player before the end of the week.
“Svanberg is leaving for medical examinations in Germany,” Fenucci says. “We tried to resist due to the value of the player. (But) it is a deal that is good for both clubs.”
This comes after Jorg Schmadtke, Wolfsburg’s managing director, admitted earlier on Thursday that the former Malmo ace was indeed a player on their radar.
Svanberg had, at one point, been mentioned as a target for Antonio Conte’s Tottenham Hotspur side earlier in the summer. That was before Spurs turned their attention to a proven Premier League operator in the masterful Yves Bissouma instead.
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