£10m striker may have Aston Villa and West Brom on his mind after boss’s snub

Southampton striker Obafemi Michael may have been hoping Aston Villa and West Bromwich Albion had pursued his apparent interest in signing him. Obafemi struck with goals against Chelsea and Manchester United last season and was a target for Aston Villa and West Brom in the summer transfer window, according to The Sun.

The newspaper said that local rivals could have gone ahead with an offer firm had received no indication that Southampton were ‘open to doing business’ for the Irish, for whom it was likely want a cost of around £ 10 million. But Obafemi remained in Santa Maria, Villa and West Brom strengthened their options through additions Ollie Watkins and Karlan Grant, respectively.

And while the second pair made bright starts for his spells Midlands, Obafemi has played just 19 minutes of football this season – in the league and Copa Speaking through Hampshire live this week, the manager of Southampton Ralph Hasenhüttl explains. why the 20-year-old has not appeared in their plans.

“The problem with Michael was always going to play a good game and then fall back a bit and was not enough to force or maintain the position of him in the team or professional team,” he said.