Southampton poised to launch move for Swansea City duo | OneFootball

Southampton are poised to launch a move for Swansea City duo Matt Grimes and Jay Fulton, according to a Patreon report from journalist Alan Nixon.

It is understood that the Saints could step up this particular pursuit after they announce Russell Martin as their new boss.

Martin is expected to be drafted in as Ruben Selles' successor this week.

Southampton will officially be relegated at the Premier League AGM on Wednesday.

This development will mean that the Saints will be entitled to pay less compensation to Swansea for Martin.

Swansea are set to demand a large fee for Grimes this summer, while Fulton could be sold despite the fact that he signed a contract in March which is set to run until the summer of 2026.

How did Southampton targets Matt Grimes and Jay Fulton fare for Swansea City last season?

Grimes was utilised on a regular basis by Swansea in the second tier in the previous term.

During the 44 league appearances that he made for the Welsh outfit, Grimes managed to provide eight direct goal contributions.

The midfielder also registered an impressive pass success rate of 91.2% at this level, and made 1.5 tackles per game (as per WhoScored).

As for Fulton, he was deployed on 38 occasions by the Swans in the Championship.

Fulton scored three goals in this division and completed 52.5 passes per match as he registered an average WhoScored match rating of 6.60.

With the help of these two players, the Swans managed to claim a 10th place finish in the Championship.

Having ended the term just three points adrift of the play-off places, it will be interesting to see whether Swansea will be able to make a positive start to the 2023/24 campaign.

When you consider that James Ward-Prowse and Romeo Lavia have both been heavily linked with a move away from Southampton ahead of the upcoming window, reinforcements may need to be made in the heart of midfield this summer.

Fulton and Grimes could both fit the bill for the Saints as they know exactly what it takes to thrive in the Championship, and will fancy their chances of hitting the ground running at St Mary's due to the fact that they have worked under Martin at Swansea.

Grimes has managed to clock up 251 second tier appearances during his career, while Fulton has been utilised on 170 occasions at this level.

Although it may take a sizeable offer to convince Swansea to part ways with these two players, Southampton ought to consider stepping up this particular pursuit in the coming weeks.