MARK HUGHES would love to make Xherdan Shaqiri his first big signing for Southampton, according to reports.
Hughes signed the Swiss star for Stoke City in 2015 from Inter Milan and the Daily Star says he rates the attacking midfielder very highly.
Seven goals this season for the under-performing Potters underline Shaqiri’s value.
He cost then Stoke boss Hughes £12m and is worth almost double that amount now.
As Stoke bid to avoid relegation from the Premier League, wideman Shaqiri has often looked on a different wave length to the rest of the team.
Should City go down no-one could blame a world class player of his natural ability wanting better than the Championship.
At 26, Shaqiri still has bags to offer and he would inject the pace and spark that Southampton have been missing this season.
Interestingly, seven goals would leave him as Southampton’s top goalscorer in the top flight.
WRAP UP RAPH Man Utd plotting £50m swoop for Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane
He also has six assists – double the number of any of the Saints’ players.
Dusan Tadic, Nathan Redmond and Ryan Bertrand all have just three.
Hughes took over from Mauricio Pellegrini at St Mary’s earlier in the month and has got off to a promising start.
How to win £1MILLION with Sun Six
SUN SIX is the new predictor game where you can win £1million – just by correctly picking the results of six games.
Here is how to get your mitts on the million:
- Make your picks – predict the scores from these six games
- Enter your details – quickly sign up to Sun Bets so we can contact you
- Score £1m – Watch the scores roll in and you can win £1m
Top pundits IAN WRIGHT and DANNY HIGGINBOTHAM have made their picks for this week if you need a steer.
And remember, you can claim a free £30 bet with Sun Bets when you sign up put a tenner on this weekend’s football here.
MOST READ IN FOOTBALL
He could scarcely buy a win at the bet365 Stadium in his last couple of months.
But Hughes has already helped Saints book their place an FA Cup semi-final place against Chelsea.
Hughes’ short-term deal is set to expire in the summer but keeping Southampton up in the Premier League will see the Welshman earn an extension.
Leave a comment