Southampton now appear to have made a significant mistake with their handling of Nathan Tella – and Nathan Jones is largely to blame.
What’s the story?
Well, Jones decided not to recall the 23-year-old from his loan spell at Burnley back in January despite the fact Southampton were struggling at the bottom of the Premier League.
The Athletic quote the 49-year-old as saying: “No, not at the minute. We’re really happy with Nathan, he’s doing fantastically well at Burnley.
“He’s having a really good experience and he is flying, but with the greatest of respect, for him to come back and do that at Premier League level, we are not sure.”
Since these comments were made, Tella has scored eight goals in eight Championship appearances, including hat-tricks against Preston North End and Hull City.
The Englishman’s excellent form comes while Southampton struggle to find the net.
Since Jones revealed he would be leaving Tella with Vincent Kompany, Southampton have actually been outscored by the man they shipped away on loan, only scoring seven goals in 11 games across all competitions.
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Southampton could lose Nathan Tella
In our view, Southampton could now lose Tella for good at the end of the season.
As things stand, it seems very likely that the Saints will be swapping places with Burnley, as they sit bottom of the Premier League while the Clarets find themselves 13 points clear at the top of the Championship.
As a result, Tella would presumably prefer to stay at Turf Moor and get a proper chance in the Premier League, rather than return to Southampton if the Saints are relegated.
Burnley – in our view at least – would also be happy to spend big on the youngster, seeing as he has scored 19 goals in all competition for them this season.
Had Jones recalled Tella, it may have played a part in keeping the precocious forward at St Mary’s for next season, but now, it feels as if Southampton are set to lose a tremendous talent.
In other news, Liverpool now expect Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain exit in free transfer once contract expires
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