It is expected that Southampton will want to hold onto Ryan Fraser beyond his loan spell this season, as the Newcastle United outcast has brought his career back to life in the Championship, according to transfer expert Dean Jones.
Newcastle are experiencing an absolute nightmare of an injury crisis at St James’ Park, with eleven players currently out of action and, of course, Sandro Tonali suspended for 10 months.
Thankfully, the international break has bought Eddie Howe some time to get his players back to full fitness before the side resumes in the Premier League against Chelsea on the 25th of November in front of the home support.
Squad depth has been a constant concern for the former Bournemouth boss since his arrival on Tyneside, as he inherited a squad that had not been properly invested in for some time during the reign of Mike Ashley.
This lack of development and investment has left the club with several players on huge contracts, lacking in market value and not keen to leave their position at the Champions League competing club, as the Saudi-led takeover has presented a sense of opportunity to many fringe players desperate to step back into the limelight on the elite stage.
One of those players is Scotland international Ryan Fraser who has had a tumultuous time in the North East and during his final months was banished to the youth team after failing to meet the standards Howe has come to expect from his first-team squad.
Having said that, Fraser is now thriving out on loan with Southampton and Dean Jones told GIVEMESPORT that is highly likely that the South Coast club will extend his stay at St Mary’s beyond the loan deal:
“I think if Southampton get the chance to sign Ryan Fraser then it’s something that they will be jumping at if he continues to be like this. Not just a player, but the character that he’s shown and the personality.
“Southampton were crying out for identity this season and they want to see a team that is playing a certain way but also has characters within it that match who they are and what they’ve been in the past. Ryan Fraser obviously had to make a big decision in terms of moving down to the Championship and he didn’t want to commit himself to being at that level, but I think he’s seeing signs that Southampton won’t be at that level very long and that they can get out of it.
“And I think, yeah, Southampton will definitely want to sign Ryan Fraser permanently. It’s just a case of proving to him that this is the place for him to be.”
Should Newcastle sell Ryan Fraser?
Whilst Howe will be conscious of the lack in quality depth he possesses currently in his squad for each position, there is no doubt that selling Fraser would be the ideal outcome for the club.
Fraser – who has a contract until June 2025 with Newcastle – has fallen out of favour with not only the manager, but also the die-hard supporters after multiple negative comments have been made in the media over the last 12 months.
Indeed, Saints do seem to bringing the best out of the 29-year-old with 13 appearances in the Championship under his belt so far and has been influential in the club’s campaign to bounce back up to the Premier League.
Despite only averaging 34 minutes per appearance, Fraser has already scored two goals and created two big chances, as well as tallying up an 84% pass completion rate under Russell Martin’s leadership – according to SofaScore.
With that being said, if the Scotsman could continue to provide for Southampton it could be a great opportunity for Howe to finally part ways with the player and earn some funds for future transfers.
