Chelsea FC: Southampton Reportedly Interested In Patrick Bamford
According to ESPN FC, Southampton is reportedly interested in Chelsea FC youngster Patrick Bamford. They are reportedly looking at bringing him in on loan next season to help reinforce their forward line. The Saints currently sit seventh in the table just a point behind Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur although Liverpool have a game in hand.
If they finish sixth or better then they will be qualified for the Europa League, but can also qualify if Arsenal defeat Aston Villa in the FA Cup final. The reason that is relevant to the discussion is that if Southampton are to qualify for Europe then they will need to bring in some reinforcements on a budget.
They currently feature Graziano Pelle and Saido Mane at forward but bringing in a third option could help Ronald Koeman deal with a more congested fixture list. Pelle and Mane are also very different in their style of play and can easily be deployed together as a striking duo with Pelle playing the role of target man. Bringing Bamford in to that mix could bring another wrinkle to the Saints’ attack.
Many Chelsea FC fans are hoping that Middlesbrough gains promotion to the Premier League so Bamford can simply go back on loan there and play with a manager and team that he is already familiar with. Other Chelsea fans hope that he is brought to Stamford Bridge and used as the third striker behind Diego Costa and Loic Remy. Both options would be excellent but playing for Middlesbrough in the Premier league would be preferred over Chelsea because he will see much more game time.
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If he does move to Southampton and they qualify for Europe, he will also get the added experience of playing in European competition. He may not play quite as much for Chelsea in the Champions League as he would for Southampton in the Europa League so that adds more intrigue to the discussion.
At Middlesbrough he is one of the better players and is used consistently by manager Aitor Karanka. If he is to join Southampton then he must join early on in the preseason so he is able to mesh with his teammates.
Personally I would prefer that he stays at Middlesbrough but only if they gain promotion. If not, then he should make the move to Southampton to finally play in the top flight. The bottom line is that Patrick Bamford has shown that he can excel at the Championship level and next season he must play in the Premier League no matter which team he does it for.
Next: Tomas Kalas Wants To Stay On Loan At Middlesbrough Next Season