Southampton have new Romeo Lavia dilemma as Liverpool transfer may have to wait

Southampton have accepted a £30 million bid from Southampton from West Ham United for James Ward-Prowse.

Multiple reports suggest that the Saints skipper is closing in on a departure from his boyhood club following their relegation from the Premier League.

A departure for Ward-Prowse, who has scored 55 goals in 410 appearances for the south-coast club, has been much expected for throughout summer transfer window. The England international has been Southampton's standout player over the past few years and will want to keep up his chances of being selected in Gareth Southgate’s squad for next year’s European Championships.

With a fee being agreed with West Ham, it's almost certain that Ward-Prowse will not feature for the Saints when they face Norwich City on Saturday. As a result, manager Russell Martin will be handed a fresh dilemma over whether to play Liverpool target Romeo Lavia against the Canaries.

The Reds have had three bids turned down - the latest being £45 million - for the Belgium international so far as they aim to fill the gaping void in defensive midfield following the sales of Fabinho and Jordan Henderson respectively.

Certainly, Kopites would like to see Lavia arrive before Jurgen Klopp's side face Chelsea on the opening day of the 2023-24 season on Sunday.

Lavia has not played for Southampton in their opening two fixtures this term. He was an unused substitute for their Championship opening-day win at Sheffield Wednesday while he was omitted from the match-day squad for a 3-1 Carabao Cup first-round loss at Gillingham. Martin rued the performances of his fringe players in the sobering reverse to the League Two outfit and felt many of them didn’t grasp their opportunity to impress.

A replacement for Ward-Prowse may be coveted by Southampton. But in the immediate future, they have a decision to make over Lavia. The Saints’ chief aim earn immediate promotion back to the Premier League and Martin may want to play his strongest options available against Norwich to secure three points.

Lavia is undoubtedly one of them Southampton may well look to utilise him to help plug the gap in the absence of Ward-Prowse before a satisfactory bid from Liverpool lands.