Southampton made an error selling Harrison Reed | OneFootball

Southampton were perhaps a little too easily convinced into selling Harrison Reed to Fulham in the summer, and it looks to have been a big mistake when you consider the lack of options Ralph Hasenhuttl currently has in central-midfield.

Reed played a key role in Scott Parker’s side earning promotion to the top-flight last season, making 28 appearances and averaging a solid 6.73 rating.

He has continued to be a vital cog in the Fulham midfield this season, with 21 Premier League appearances to his name, in which he has averaged a 6.69 rating.

Although Southampton have struggled with a lot of injury issues this season, it would have been sensible to keep Reed at the club, considering they had just James Ward-Prowse, Oriol Romeu and Ibrahima Diallo as senior central-midfield options.

Hasenhuttl has recently lost Diallo to injury, and it was confirmed that Romeu is set to miss the rest of the season with an ankle injury, which has seriously emphasised their lack of squad depth in midfield.

Youngster Will Smallbone was also ruled out for the season with injury, which has led to the Austrian manager turning to academy talent Alexandre Jankewitz on occasion.

However, the 19-year-old was sent off just two minutes into his full Premier League debut, so having a more experienced player such as Reed would definitely have been helpful to Hasenhuttl in the current injury crisis.

During his time at Southampton, he certainly won over some more senior players with his performances, with Shane Long dubbing the youngster “immense” after his performance in a 3-0 win against Everton.

Considering the 26-year-old has plenty of experience in the Premier League and Championship in his career, you could definitely argue that, at the moment, he is a better player than Jankewitz – who has just three senior appearances to his name at Southampton.

Therefore, Hasenhuttl arguably made a mistake by selling him to Fulham for just £8 million during the summer, as he would surely have been a very useful option to have in midfield this season.

And, in other news… Saints will surely rue failed loan move for 24 y/o defender with “a lot of potential”