Manchester City youngster Shea Charles will reportedly complete his proposed move to Southampton this week.
It has been claimed that City and the Saints have agreed on a £15 million fee for the defender. Apparently Borussia Dortmund were also keen to land the starlet.
Southampton are looking to rebuild ahead of playing in the Championship, after their relegation from the Premier League.
And they are again turning to City’s youth in the hope of doing so.
Last summer, Southampton signed Gavin Bazunu and Romeo Lavia from City.
And they are now going to add promising young midfielder Charles, who made his debut for City’s first-team in the final Premier League game of 2022/23 against Brentford.
Shea Charles Southampton move expected to complete this week
According to the Daily Mail, Charles’ move to St. Mary’s is now imminent.
Everything is agreed between the two clubs.
It seemingly is now just a case of things being finalised.
Apparently, confirmation of Charles’ move should arrive at some point this week.
It is expected that Charles – previously described as a ‘Rolls-Royce’ by Northern Ireland U17 and U19 manager Gerard Lyttle – would be a replacement for James Ward-Prowse.
Southampton’s captain is expected to depart at some point this summer, as he is easily Premier League-quality.
Amazing business from Man City to get £15 million for Shea Charles
It is really is brilliant that City are able to command such a fee for a young player who has made just one cameo appearance for the first-team.
All the investment into the youth setup is now seriously paying off.
Clubs are taking note of how dominant City are across all age groups, and want a slice of the talent.
Charles is a really promising and versatile young player who will be a great addition for Southampton, and hopefully he will now get the regular, senior football he needs.
It will be interesting to see if City insert another buy-back clause, as they did with Romeo Lavia.
