Southampton should push for Tottenham transfer agreement following Wembley success: View | OneFootball

Southampton defeated Leeds United 1-0 in Sunday's Championship play-off final at Wembley Stadium, courtesy of Adam Armstrong's 24th minute strike.

A mistake from Ethan Ampadu in defence for the Whites offered the 27-year-old hotshot a one-on-one shooting opportunity, which he fired past Illan Meslier from a tight angle.

The Saints went on to achieve victory, and have achieved their goal of securing a Premier League return, a feat which evaded Sunday's opponents Leeds.

But if the Hampshire outfit want to stick around in the top-flight, they have got plenty of work to do in the summer transfer window as manager Russell Martin enters his first stint as a Premier League boss.

Southampton have a talented squad, and several players who played for them in the top division, but in order to retain their re-found top-flight status they will need to strengthen their ranks during the coming weeks and months.

Joe Rodon would be a good signing for the Saints

Martin has solid defenders at his disposal, and promotion to the Premier League means that Taylor Harwood-Bellis will be staying at St Mary's on a permanent basis, while the Saints are now in good stead to retain the services of Kyle Walker-Peters, who had previously been linked with a move back to his former club Tottenham Hotspur by GiveMeSport.

But Rodon is a central defender who would undoubtedly strengthen the Saints' backline, and following his loan spell with Leeds, he may be unlikely to stay at Elland Road after the Whites' failure to win promotion.

The Wales international is well suited to Martin's philosophy of playing out from the back, and according to FotMob, he maintained a thoroughly impressive pass accuracy of 90.8% during the 2023/24 Championship campaign.

Furthermore, as per Wales Online, the 26-year-old still has a year left on his contract with parent club Spurs, so the Saints could look to sign him either permanently or on loan.

While Rodon has only made 15 Premier League appearances since joining the north London outfit in 2020, his performances at Elland Road this season demonstrate that he is a class above the Championship and the Saints should look to capitalise on the Whites' failure to earn promotion.

A move to St Mary's would be a win-win scenario for the former Swansea City man, as Martin needs to strengthen his side ahead of his first Premier League campaign as a manager, while Rodon would be keen on first team football in the top-flight, something Spurs have seldom been able to offer him.

A Saints swoop for Joe Rodon would be a sour one for Leeds fans

Rodon was a class act for the West Yorkshire side during his 2023/24 loan spell, but it ended in a sorry fashion with a play-off final defeat.

The Wales international made 43 Championship appearances for the Whites, and played the full 90 minutes for Daniel Farke's men in all three of their play-off games, which shows how highly valued he has been by all involved with Leeds.

Whites supporters would be left with a sour taste in their mouths if Rodon signed for the Saints, who beat them to Premier League promotion via a narrow play-off victory.

But bringing Rodon to St Mary's would be a shrewd piece of business by Martin and co, and would set the tone as they look to enjoy another long stint in the top-flight.