Harwood-Bellis asks to leave as Saints sit bottom before Stoke visit | OneFootball

Taylor Harwood-Bellis has asked to leave for Benfica, but Southampton rejected a €20m offer and still value him at around £30m. With his deal running to 2028, the club are not obliged to sell.

A 21-match unbeaten league run ended with defeat at Watford, and Eckert said two errors in possession proved costly against a strong transition side. Southampton are bottom after one defeat and a four-point deduction. Bild claims Marseille have joined Southampton, Hull and Fiorentina in the chase for Werder Bremen forward Justin Njinmah.

One of those mistakes saw Jack Stephens hook a clearance infield. After Watford, Eckert prioritised another midfielder, with Jordan James touted as a solution, though he is said to be Wolves-bound for about £10m.

Moses Sesay wants first-team football this season, either at Saints or on loan. With Shea Charles already at Fulham and Stoke four days away, losing Harwood-Bellis too would force Eckert to rebuild a spine he has barely finished, and another loss could leave them 10 points off the early leaders.

Benfica would need to roughly double their opening bid for talks to shift, and Harwood-Bellis would rather be in Lisbon. Among supporters, a fee between £25m and £30m is seen as fair if reinvested in a centre back and a striker.

Burnley and Stoke have entered the race for Will Smallbone, the free agent West Brom want as an Alex Mowatt replacement. He left Southampton after 18 years.

Source: Sainstmarching.com

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