One of Southampton’s summer targets may have already taken a leaf out of Theo Walcott’s book.
Speaking last year, the former Saints hero admitted that he turned down potentially head-spinning, bank-balance boosting moves to the Middle East before hanging up his boots at the age of just 34.
“I had some offers abroad, and at some very good Championship teams. There’s been some Saudi offers, but that’s not where I want to see myself playing,” Theo Walcott told The Overlap on YouTube.
“Nothing against the money or the league. I just feel like right now if my heart’s not into playing football, then it’s not fair on the clubs and not fair on me.”
15 years Walcott’s junior, young Lamine Camara is very much a footballer at the other end of the spectrum.
But while much of those Saudi dollars have been spent luring ageing superstars to the desert – see Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane and Karim Benzema – the big-money signings of Spain U21 star Gabri Veiga and co show that there is a commitment of investing in youth too, ensuring that the Pro League is not tarnished with the same ‘retirement league’ brush that had tainted China or the MLS.
Southampton given Lamine Camara boost
There has been a shift towards targeting young, up-and-coming players capable of putting the Saudi top-flight on the map as a genuine destination for ambitious footballers who’s best years are ahead of them.
Lamine Camara, outstanding for Metz in the 2023/24 Ligue 1 campaign, fits the bill.
FootMercato report that Southampton failed with an initial £8.5 million bid but remain keen. The Saints may feel increasingly emboldened, meanwhile, as Camara turns his nose up at a £13.5 million move to an as-yet unnamed Saudi Arabian outfit.
Southampton will have to raise their bid considerably to get near that Saudi offer, though Metz may be forced to consider lower fees after suffering relegation to the second-tier.
Camara was one of the few bright sparks last term, alongside their Monaco-bound talisman Georges Mikautadze. The youngster opened his Ligue 1 account with a David Beckham-esque lob from his own half and already has six goals for the senior Senegal national team.
Some have suggested that Camara may be Senegal’s brightest young talent since Mane – the one-time Southampton star, lest we forget – exploded onto the scene.
Also at Metz, strangely enough.
“I am pleased after scoring a brace in the match, and I must remain focused now on the rest of the matches,” Camara said after scoring a brace against Gambia at the African Cup of Nations in January, per CAF Online.
“I am pleased to participate in such a tournament with the first team and to be in the company of senior players such as Sadio Mane and others. These players are the ones who helped me stand out today.”
In a hectic start to the summer, newly promoted Southampton have already snapped up Taylor-Harwood Bellis, Charlie Taylor, Ronnie Edwards and Nathan Wood, while bringing Adam Lallana back home.
Yukinari Sugawara also joins from AZ Alkmaar as a potential replacement for Kyle Walker-Peters. The right-back remains on the radar of a West Ham side who green-lit Flynn Downes’ return to the banks of the Solent.
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