Southampton may swerve Burnley transfer return should Russell Martin triumph: View | OneFootball

After an impressive season in the Championship last year, Burnley man Manuel Benson has been unable to replicate his form in the Premier League this season.

Because of his impressive form last season, Russell Martin's Southampton side looked at signing the Belgian winger in the January transfer window, but were unable to get a deal over the line for the player.

According to Football Insider, Saints even had a deal accepted for the player which would have seen him move to St Mary's on loan until the end of the season, with Martin's side set to pay a £1million loan fee, and cover the player's wages for the rest of the season.

However, the deal broke down and Benson remained at Turf Moor, where he's struggled again during the second-half of the season.

If Southampton are promoted they will need better signings than Manuel Benson

Manuel Benson was very impressive for Burnley in the Championship, and would have been terrific for Saints had they been able to sign him on loan in January, but he's struggled in the Premier League.

This means that if Southampton are promoted, they should pursue other targets instead.

The 26-year-old has played just seven Premier League games this season for Burnley, starting just once on the second weekend of the season where he was hauled off at half-time, and he's played just 91 minutes of Premier League football.

This isn't someone a newly-promoted Premier League club should be trying to sign, as it's clear that, despite being a very good second tier player, Benson isn't quite up to the Premier League.

His Premier League season has been vastly different to the 2022/23 season he enjoyed in the Championship. Last season, Benson made 33 Championship appearances, scoring 12 goals and registering 3 assists as Burnley won the league.

Given his form last season, you'd have thought that the Belgian would do quite well in the Premier League, but it's not worked out like that at all.

In fairness, he hasn't really been given a chance to show what he can do with a run of games, but Vincent Kompany clearly doesn't think he's good enough.

With this in mind, Saints should think twice about a summer move for Benson should they win promotion.

Manuel Benson would be a good summer signing for a Championship club

Despite a disappointing season, it would be a surprise if there weren't Championship clubs who took an interest in Benson this summer.

It looks as if Burnley could be set for relegation this season, and if the Clarets are in the Championship next season, you'd have thought Benson would feature more prominently for Kompany's side.

However, the winger may fancy a fresh start, and there would be plenty of Championship clubs queuing up to take him off Burnley's hands.

There's no guarantee that Southampton will get promoted, and if Russell Martin's side remain in the Championship next season, a summer move for Benson would be a very shrewd addition.