As the Jose Fonte transfer saga comes to a head, we remember some of the players who tried to force a move away from Southampton.
Exodus via email
It seemed like every Southampton player was trying to jump ship in the summer of 2014. However, one player stated his intention to leave in a rather unconventional fashion. According to the Independent, Dejan Lovren turned in his transfer request via email, telling executive director Les Reed and chairman Ralph Krueger that he wanted to play Champions League football. The Croatian centre-back would be granted a transfer to Liverpool a month later.
In the same transfer window, Liverpool also showed interest in Adam Lallana. The long-serving Saints midfielder reciprocated that interest and subsequently tried to engineer a move to Anfield. Lallana admitted to the Independent that his efforts to leave the club ‘got nasty’ but denied going on strike to secure the deal.
Destroyed in one hour
Towards the end of the 2014 summer window, Morgan Schneiderlin took to social media to vent his frustration at being denied a move to Tottenham Hotspur. The midfielder tweeted “6 years of an amazing journey #saintsfc DESTROYED in 1 hour !!!” Shortly after, he handed in a written transfer request to formalise his desire to leave the club, according to Sky Sports. However, the Saints hierarchy held strong and refused to let another key player leave St Mary’s. The Frenchman would have to wait until the following summer to join Manchester United.
Talk to Schneiderlin
The following year, Victor Wanyama also failed in his attempts to force through a transfer to Tottenham – at least for the time being. Wanyama missed the Saints’ 3-0 win over Norwich City after claiming that he wasn’t in the right frame of mind to play, according to the Mirror. After Wanyama’s transfer request, Southampton boss Ronald Koeman told the midfielder to seek out Schniederlin’s advice after his patience resulted in a move to United. Wanyama would see out the season at St Mary’s before completing his desired move to White Hart Lane.
Striker on strike
Perhaps the most drastic attempt from a player to leave Southampton came in 2007. As the BBC reported, Kenwyne Jones refused to play for the club following interest from newly-promoted Derby County. Jones submitted a transfer request and effectively went on strike, as manager George Burley revealed the forward had refused to play against Stoke City. The Trinidad and Tobago international would end up sealing switch to Sunderland with Stern John heading in the opposite direction.
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