Southampton letting Kyle Walker-Peters leave for free looks disgraceful | OneFootball

Kyle Walker-Peters, a loyal and excellent player ever since donning the Southampton jersey, will leave for free after watching his club be relegated. Frankly, it shouldn't end like this.

The Saints had a major choice to make in the January transfer window; they had the opportunity to sell Kyle Walker-Peters then, but opted not to. The reason being, we assume, was that the Southampton owners saw relegation survival as a genuine likelihood.

However, that likelihood was never met. The only respite from Southampton's season conclusion is that they have matched Derby's record for being the worst team in Premier League, so they at least won't be alone (assuming no more points are picked up this season).

Southampton letting Kyle Walker-Peters leave for free looks awful

Now, it casts a disgraceful light on Southampton that they have allowed this to happen to one of their greatest defenders of the modern era. KWP can confidently go down as a St Marys Stadium legend for all he's given to the club, but he deserved to leave in a better fashion.

Is it KWP's fault that Southampton were relegated? Of course, partly. He is part of the squad that caused the Saints to go down. So, he is partly to blame for the manner he's exited, but only partly.

He would have preferred to leave after helping Southampton stay in the Premier League. This manner would have been easier for the fans to accept, too. However, it wasn't to be, and now, Saints fans must watch Walker-Peters live on in the Premier League, while they're a tier below.

This is the harsh reality of the sport we all signed up to love, unfortunately. It doesn't mean we can't complain about it, though, as complaining is what we do best.

KWP, thank you for your service; it's a shame (for all parties) it had to end this way.