The exodus has finally stopped at St. Mary’s Stadium. Now the influx can begin.
Southampton’s new manager Ronald Koeman has signed his first player as Saints boss, as 25-year-old Serbian playmaker Dusan Tadic has arrived for a reported $17 million from FC Twente.
Tadic has dazzled as a playmaker in the Dutch top flight over the past few seasons and last year he led the Eredivisie assist table with 14 and his 16 goals made him the fourth-highest scorer in the division. Watch the below from his old club FC Twente to get a flavor of what Tadic is all about.
If Saints were looking for the perfect replacement for recently departed captain Adam Lallana, they have their man in Tadic. Coupled with the departure of Lallana to Liverpool, the team who finished eighth last season in the PL also lost Rickie Lambert to Liverpool and Luke Shaw to Manchester United this summer.
At last, there’s some good news for Saints fans.
The Serbian international has 25 caps for his country and has played in the Dutch leagues since 2010. Tadic is a pure playmaker and created more chances, plus played more key passes than any other player in the Dutch top-flight during the 2013-14 season.
Speaking of his move to the Premier League to Saints’ website, Tadic was delighted to join a club that he felt shares his own attacking philosophy.
Koeman shared his delight in capturing Tadic’s signature, as clubs such as Everton were reportedly interested in the attacker. The Dutch legend in charge of Saints also pointed towards more players arriving at St. Mary’s in the coming weeks to replace those lost. Feyenoord striker Graziano Pelle is expected to sign for Saints in the coming days as Koeman looks to his homeland to recruit new players.
“It was very important to get this signing done – not only for me, but for the rest of the squad and for our fans,” Koeman said. “It’s fantastic news. We’ve lost some good players but we want to continue the ambition and philosophy of the club, so it’s a great signal to have brought in our first player. He’s a great player. I know him very well from Holland, where he had a great season last year. We now look forward to bringing in more players because we want to continue and maybe even better what Southampton did last season.”