Caleb Watts admits he is open to leaving Southampton if he cannot make the breakthrough under Ralph Hasenhuttl at the Premier League outfit, speaking to Australian publication FTBL.
The Saints can boast one of the most feted academy systems in English football. Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott, Luke Shaw, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Adam Lallana, James Ward-Prowse and more all came through the ranks on the South Coast.
In recent times, however, the pathway to first-team football appears to have become increasingly pockmarked with potholes. Alex Jankewitz and Michael Obafemi both left the club last summer while Will Smallbone and Nathan Tella have found opportunities hard to come by.
Ben White, a £50 million England international, was also released by Southampton at the age of just 16.
20-year-old Caleb Watts, meanwhile, is entering the final 12 months of his St Mary’s contract.
And the Australia U23 international, a 2018 signing from Queens Park Rangers, would have few qualms about packing his bags and heading for the exit if he feels that first-team football would be easier obtained elsewhere.
Should Caleb Watts leave Southampton?
“I’m just looking forward to next season now,” says Watts, who has been restricted to just one appearance on loan at Crawley Town thanks to a serious hamstring injury.
“At this stage if my career, I need to be playing senior football. I’d love that to happen here at Southampton, but it’s a Premier League club and that will be hard. If that doesn’t happen I’ll see where the wind takes me and I’ll go somewhere where I’m wanted.
“My main thing is to be playing. That’s why I pushed so hard for a loan. I need to test myself against physically tougher and harder opposition.
“It’s hard to break through at any good club, especially one like Southampton who are pushing for the top ten. It’s never going to be easy. If I get my chance I will crack at it. If not then I’ll go somewhere where I can play.
“Of course I want to stay at Southampton – we’ll see what happens.”
A stylish and tenacious midfield player, Watts provided five assists in nine games for Southampton at Premier League 2 level in the first half of this season.
He played three top-flight games under Hasenhuttl in 2020/21, too, albeit totalling just 36 minutes of action.
“He’s a wonderful talent,” Watts’ former Australia U17 coach Trevor Morgan. “He was exceptional for us at the World Cup and showed no fear in the matches we played.
“He’s a guy that can attack space quickly, he can score goals, he takes responsibility and wants to be on the ball.
“He’s got a very high work rate, he’s flexible in that he can probably play anywhere in midfield, and he’s an intelligent player. When you speak to him about the game, he understands the game and he reads the game.”
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