Southampton were ‘very close’ to signing £50m and £25m stars

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Southampton chairman Henrik Kraft admits missing out on the likes of PSV Eindhoven talisman Cody Gakpo and Benfica striker Goncalo Ramos was ‘disappointing’ for the Premier League strugglers, speaking to The Athletic. 

Back in 2003, the Saints failed to complete a £3 million double deal for future Stamford Bridge heroes Florent Malouda and Didier Drogba.  

Nearly twenty years on, West Ham’s Gianluca Scamacca and Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez – two strikers who would eventually move to England for a combined fee of around £100 million – also slipped through Southampton’s fingers. 

The summer of 2022, meanwhile, is already starting to feel like another case of missed opportunity.

Netherlands international Gakpo, one of the most coveted forwards in Europe, admitted to The Times that he could have joined Southampton before September’s transfer deadline. He opted to stay at PSV instead.

Now, enhancing his reputation with a dramatic late goal in the 2-0 World Cup victory over Senegal, the £50 million-rated Gakpo is ‘unfeasible’ for a team sitting just two points off the bottom of the Premier League table. 

According to The Athletic, Southampton also held talks over a £25 million deal for Benfica whizzkid Ramos. He, like Gakpo, looks destined for bigger and better things these days.  

Southampton could have signed World Cup hero Cody Gakpo and Benfica’s Goncalo Ramos

“We tried very hard,” explains Kraft; understood to be referring to both Gakpo and Ramos albeit without naming either player directly. 

“We were very close and had at least two very high-quality candidates (almost through the door). They agreed personal terms. They were both playing in Champions League qualifiers, which pushed us very late in the window.

“For various reasons, they just didn’t happen. Then there was very little time to do anything else when that became clear.”

Gakpo’s PSV were beaten by Rangers in their Champions League qualifier at the end of August. There was to be no such dissatisfaction for Benfica; Ramos’ hat-trick helping fire the Lisbon giants into the group-stages at Midtjylland’s expense.  

“(Missing out) was disappointing,” Kraft adds. “And it might have made a difference going into the season. But when I reflect on the transfer window, my overriding feeling is not one of failure to sign a striker. It’s one of; ‘wow, we signed a lot of really good players’.”