Southampton make January transfer plea over Chelsea loanee Lesley Ugochukwu's future | OneFootball

Southampton will learn Chelsea's decision over whether Lesley Ugochukwu will remain on loan at the club once the January transfer window closes.

The 20-year-old has made just 12 appearances in all competitions for the newly-promoted side since his temporary summer switch to the south coast.

Ugochukwu was in and out of the side under Russell Martin and failed to feature in Martin's final four games in charge before he was dismissed following their 5-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on December 15.

His future at St. Mary's was uncertain and it looked increasingly likely he would return to Stamford Bridge in January, handing Chelsea a decision over his next steps for the remainder of the campaign.

The situation has now changed at Southampton after the appointment of Ivan Juric last month, which has seen Ugochukwu feature in their last three league matches against Fulham, West Ham and Crystal Palace.

With the winter window now open, Chelsea will have a decision on their hands over whether to recall the Frenchman.

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Southampton have made their stance extremely clear. Juric wants to keep Ugochukwu at the club for the rest of the season to aid their bid to avoid relegation back to the Championship.

"I want him to stay here," Juric told reporters ahead of their Premier League clash against Brentford this weekend.

"He has great potential. The people from Chelsea are not stupid. He is a really young guy, 20 years old and it's not always easy to work with youngsters. I think he has really good potential."