Tottenham Hotspur have been issued a ‘hands-off’ warning with Ralph Hasenhuttl insisting no-one, including Danny Ings, will leave Southampton this month, speaking to the Daily Echo.
While things are going swimmingly on the pitch for the Saints, there are a few problems that need solving off it.
The South Coast club posted pre-tax losses of £76 million recently and those covid-inflicted financial concerns have made tying down two key players increasingly difficult (Echo).
Goal reports talks with left-back Ryan Bertrand and star striker Ings have reached an impasse, with both players hoping for a pay rise that would shatter Southampton’s wage structure.
In these testing times, the Saints are unwilling to meet their demands.
Tottenham are watching closely, with Ings lined up to join fellow England international Harry Kane in a partnership that would strike fear into top-flight defences across the land (talkSPORT).
But with Champions League qualification a realistic possibility, Southampton won’t countenance high-profile January departures.
“We want to keep everyone here now,” Hasenhuttl says.
“You never know with the covid situation whether you may all of a sudden have a few players out.
“It is no coincidence the transfer market is very quiet at the moment because I think a lot of managers around football are worried with the strange situation we are in.
“(But) we want every player to stay here.”
Ings, who scored 25 goals in all competitions last season and has seven this campaign, boasts the intelligence, movement and adaptability to play alongside Kane as well as instead of him.
It’s not hard to imagine the former Liverpool striker replicating the sort of formidable partnership he has enjoyed with Che Adams – but in north London.
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