Plymouth Argyle, Barnsley and Leyton Orient join Reading in race for Southampton's Dom Ballard | OneFootball

The Saints' young centre-forward is likely to make a move away from the club this summer.

Southampton striker Dom Ballard has caught the attention of four League One clubs ahead of an anticipated summer move away from St Mary's stadium this summer.

As one of the best-performing players in the Premier League 2 over the past couple of seasons, Ballard has shown potential in front of goal that has got teams interested in him.

The 20-year-old has already had three loan spells away from his parent club - all of them were in the third tier. Now, with less than a year left on his deal with the Saints, a permanent transfer is looking likely for Ballard, according to the Daily Echo.

There isn't an obvious way for him to make an impact for Will Still in the Championship. He has only made a few first-team appearances for Southampton since making his debut in the EFL Cup against Cambridge United three campaigns ago.

His desire for first-team football has sparked the interest of four League One clubs, one of whom he has already spent time with.

League One quartet in battle to sign Dom Ballard from Southampton

Ballard's trio of temporary transfers so far in his career led him to Reading, then Blackpool and then Cambridge. The former of those were reported by the Reading Today to be interested in bringing the 20-year-old back to the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

Three of the Royals' division rivals are also involved in the race to sign Ballard, according to the Daily Echo. Plymouth Argyle, Barnsley and Leyton Orient have all expressed their interest in the former England youth team representative, as per the Hampshire outlet.

Trees weren't necessarily pulled up by the young Saints goalscorer during his spells in the third tier. He managed six goals in 45 appearances across his various loan moves within the league, but his 14 goals in eight Premier League 2 showings over the past two seasons shows that there is an instinctive finisher within him.

Dom Ballard should have a clear preference on his next destination

Of the four teams who are said to be interested in Ballard, Plymouth and Reading are the two that seem in most need of another goalscorer - and just more signings in general, to be fair.

Noel Hunt's Royals have only scored once in their opening three league matches of the season, all of which have been losses where they have conceded twice. They were previously linked with free-agent centre-half Jonathan Tomkinson, but nothing has materialised from those talks quite yet.

The Pilgrims have equally been defeated in their first few League One contests since being relegated from the Championship, but they have looked more of a threat going forward than Reading.

For Ballard, he already knows the club and the supporters at the Select Car Leasing Stadium. He had a decent-ish spell with them the last time he was there. It's not too far from Southampton. While a return to Reading would depend on them firming up their interest in the 20-year-old, for him, it seems like the most logical move to make.