Liverpool considering move for Southampton player as Saudi Arabian outfit ready £40 million offer | OneFootball

Despite having a number of players on their books that are commanding significant transfer interest, Southampton are yet to rake in the big bucks for some of their stars.

That has not stopped the Saints splashing the cash that they are expected to make though with Manchester City's teenage midfielder Shea Charles arriving at St Mary's Stadium this week for a fee that could end up rising to £15 million.

Northern Ireland international Charles comes into an area of the pitch in midfield where the Saints could be very short in soon, with the futures of James Ward-Prowse and Romeo Lavia very much up in the air.

Ward-Prowse is attracting interest from multiple Premier League clubs but no offers have landed yet for the England international, but whilst he is very much in the prime of his career, Lavia has many of his best years ahead of him.

The Belgian was relatively unknown last summer when arriving from Man City for an initial fee of £10.5 million, having played just twice for the Citizens at senior level, but his stock has risen considerably within 12 months despite being part of a relegated side.

Several top English clubs want to sign the 19-year-old this summer but Southampton are demanding in excess of £50 million for his services, which has so far proved to be somewhat of a stumbling block.

However, a potential domino effect in the transfer market could mean a move is made by one club in particular in the near future and that is Liverpool.

What is the latest on Liverpool's interest in Romeo Lavia?

Liverpool's keenness on Lavia is no secret as they have been monitoring him for some time, but they have so far been unable to afford a deal without selling more players.

The Reds have focused on adding attack-minded midfielders such as Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszla so far in the transfer market, but now the focus may turn to the defensive side of things.

That is because according to a report from The Athletic, Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad are preparing an offer for Liverpool holding midfielder Fabinho worth in the region of £40 million.

Al-Ittihad are one of the four clubs who have been taken over by the Public Investment Fund and have already added Ngolo Kante and Karim Benzema to their squad, and they now want to test Liverpool's resolve with a massive bid for the Brazilian.

Liverpool however do not want to sell without a replacement lined up though, with Lavia now coming back into their thoughts with the money potentially coming in from Fabinho's departure.

Should Southampton sell Romeo Lavia this summer?

Even though he's just 19 years of age and has a lot to learn, Lavia has already showed a lot of maturity in his game for such an inexperienced player.

Capped by the Belgium national team already, Lavia is destined for bigger and better things and playing in the Championship this coming season probably wouldn't do his immediate national team chances much good at all.

Southampton though will drive a hard bargain and you would not put it past them whatsoever to bring in the £50 million that they want for Lavia's services, and a cut of that will go to Man City too.