Southampton facing £10.4m star transfer dilemma - it could define their promotion hopes | OneFootball

Caspar Jander's impressive performances for Saints have caught the attention of multiple clubs

Southampton appear to have finally turned a corner under the permanent management of Tonda Eckert, with a major upturn in performances and results in the past four weeks giving the German's side plenty of confidence that a play-off finish can be achieved.

Since suffering a 2-1 defeat to Hull City at St Mary's on January 17th, the South Coast side have since gone five matches unbeaten in the Championship, winning four of those encounters.

The crowning moment in said run was, of course, their dramatic victory against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday night, in which Saints were 3-0 down after 29 minutes, but managed to stage a comeback for the ages within the last 29 minutes, including three strikes in the final 14 minutes of normal and added time in the East Midlands to win the match 4-3.

Southampton's latest three-point haul saw them shoot up to ninth in the table as a result of the continuously congested fight to reach the play-offs, narrowing the gap to sixth-placed Wrexham to just one point in the process.

As such, the prospect of achieving promotion through the post-season lottery is very much back on for the time being, with plenty of Saints players enjoying a rich vein of confidence at this moment in time.

It has been well-documented that, overall, the second tier season has been one of inconsistency for the side who finished bottom of the Premier League last term.

However, the same cannot entirely be said for a cluster of players at St Mary's, who have continuously performed at an impressive level.

The likes of Taylor Harwood-Bellis, who Football League World exclusively revealed was attracting Premier League interest in the winter transfer window, and Brazilian wing ace, Leo Scienza, are two names who certainly fall into said category.

German midfielder, Caspar Jander, isn't too far behind either, although recent developments will certainly give the club plenty to ponder ahead of the summer transfer window if the Munster-born man is to continue performing at such a level.

Caspar Jander's impressive Southampton FC performances have already led to transfer interest

Amid a summer window which mainly saw several high-profile names depart St Mary's, the £10.4m deal which saw Jander move from FC Nuremberg on a four-year contract was particularly eye-catching.

Indeed, the 22-year-old racked up 12 goal contributions in midfield last season for the 2.Bundesliga outfit, and played 91 minutes of the German Under-21s side's run to the UEFA European Championship final last June, before they were defeated by England.

It has often been debated that highly-rated prospects can take some time to aclimatise to the rigours of a 46-game Championship season, but that hasn't been the case with Jander for Saints.

Although he perhaps hasn't amassed anywhere near the aforementioned tally of goal contributions, he has slotted in nicely to, initially, Will Still and now Eckert's midfield in a deep-lying role alongside the likes of Shea Charles and Flynn Downes.

As well as scoring twice in 27 games, Jander's underlying numbers showcase how much of a midfield 'metronome' he has become so quickly, producing an impressive 89.7 percent pass completion ratio, the creation of 22 chances on top of 78 tackles and 93 recoveries.

Although his performance against the Foxes in midweek saw him replaced by Charles - who scored the winner - at half-time, it was reported less than 24 hours later that Jander has already become of interest to RB Leipzig, VfB Stuttgart and Ajax ahead of the first window of next season, with Saints said to value him between €15 million and €20 million (£13m-£17m).

Southampton FC should consider building their team around Caspar Jander and Shea Charles

The aforementioned price-tag and interest in Jander certainly gives Saints a dilemma, as the midfielder will still have three years left on his contract by the time the summer rolls around.

There is, of course, plenty of time left for the German to fulfill his full potential, which, in turn, will only increase the profit which Southampton could make on his services over time.

Furthermore, if the club are serious about their chances of promotion, be that this season or next, Eckert must consider building his side around Jander and Charles in the long-term.

The Northern Ireland international has proven his pedigree at Championship level either for Saints or on loan with Sheffield Wednesday, with the hope now being that his last-gasp winner at the King Power will provide a platform to build from for the ex-Manchester City man after an indifferent and injury-hit personal campaign.