Southampton may return for Dom Ballard amid striker need | OneFootball

According to Sainstmarching.com, Southampton could need a new striker this summer, and a permanent move for Cyle Larin is no longer on the table after promotion hopes were checked by Spygate unravelling. Larin struck eight Championship goals in 16 appearances last season.

The 31-year-old heads to the World Cup with Canada, a reminder of what might have been. Ross Stewart’s contract is up, and the Scotsman has discussed a desire to stay beyond June, with his own World Cup involvement also noted.

Even if Stewart remains, the Saints would still look light up front, so revisiting former striker Dom Ballard does not feel far-fetched.

Ballard, 21, largely featured in the academy, making four senior outings and scoring once in the EFL Cup in 2022 against Cambridge United. He later joined the U’s on loan in 2025 and amassed 60 goals from 73 games across the U18s and U21s before departing.

He moved to Leyton Orient last summer and flourished at Brisbane Road. Despite only six prior League One goals with Reading, Blackpool and Cambridge, he had six by mid October under Richie Wellens and finished with 23 to claim the division’s Golden Boot.

Ballard is thought to welcome a Championship return, and Wrexham have been linked. With Larin back at Mallorca, a reunion could tempt Southampton as the window opens.

Source: Sainstmarching.com