Southampton FC: If nothing happens, these 3 players are going to leave St Mary’s ahead of the Championship season | OneFootball

Southampton will likely have a busy summer following relegation - but these players out of contract need their futures sorted ASAP

Southampton FC have received the inevitable news that they will be a Championship club next season.

Sunday’s 3-1 defeat away at Tottenham Hotspur confirmed what Saints fans had feared all season long, with Southampton taking just 10 points from 31 Premier League games.

No with proper clarity of their league status for next season, Southampton can properly plan for the 2025/26 campaign – with expiring contracts high on the agenda.

Kyle Walker-Peters

Kyle Walker-Peters will be the standout name on the list of Saints players with expiring contracts this summer.

The former Tottenham Hotspur man became an England international during his time at St. Mary’s, and has been linked with a move away since Southampton were first relegated back to the Premier League in 2023.

Reports suggest that there has been no progress with talks between the full-back and Southampton, with it claimed that Saints are resigned to losing a player they signed for £12million in 2020 for nothing this summer.

Adam Lallana

Adam Lallana made an emotional return to Southampton ahead of the 2024/25 Premier League season, joining on a free transfer from fellow south coast club Brighton & Hove Albion.

After taking his first steps into coaching during his stint with the Seagulls, Lallana arrived to continue his post-playing career whilst adding much needed Premier League experience to the Southampton dressing room.

Injuries limited his playing time earlier in the season, but now the former England international will have to split his focus.

That is because Lallana has been appointed player-assistant manager on an interim basis until the end of the season, supporting Simon Rusk after the sacking of Ivan Juric.

As such, it is likely any decision over Lallana’s decision will be made following the final seven games, with the midfielder focusing on his coaching duties.

Whether Lallana stays on in either a playing capacity or a coaching role will likely depend on Saints’ next manager, making the 35-year-old's future quite murky.

Joe Lumley

Joe Lumley has been the quintessential back-up goalkeeper during his time on the south coast, barely playing since arriving on a free transfer from Middlesbrough ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.

Consigned to appearances in the FA Cup during Southampton’s promotion from the Championship last year, Lumley was behind Gavin Bazunu and Alex McCarthy in the pecking order under Russell Martin.

Despite that, he was offered a one-year extension to the one-year deal he had initially signed.

Lumley did make a handful of Premier League appearances earlier this season when Aaron Ramsdale and McCarthy were both unavailable, but with Bazunu set to return from a loan spell with Standard Liege this summer, the 30-year-old seems fairly redundant at St. Mary’s.

There has been little to suggest that Lumley will sign fresh terms to stay on for a third season at Southampton.