Southampton striker Paul Onuachu is attracting interest from Turkey following his excellent start to life in the country whilst on loan with Trabzonspor, according to Fotospor.
The 29-year-old only joined the Saints in January for a fee of around £18 million from Belgian outfit Genk, where he scored 85 goals in 134 appearances. He was signed by then-manager Nathan Jones, who was looking for extra fire power in their fight for Premier League survival. However, the ex-Luton Town boss was sacked shortly after and the attacker failed to hit the back of the net in his 11 top flight appearances.
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With Ruben Selles acting as interim manager following Jones’ dismissal, Russell Martin took over in the summer and was clearly not a fan of the Nigerian international. A move back to Genk was touted in a swap deal involving Joseph Paintsil, with Southampton heavily criticised by the Pro League side for their pursuit of the winger.
Onuachu made just one appearance for the Hampshire side this season – a brief cameo in the Carabao Cup first round defeat against Gillingham – and he eventually joined Trabzonspor on a season-long loan. He scored three goals in his first three outings for the Super Lig side and he notched his fourth of the season in the 3-2 win over Fenerbahce on Saturday – a result which sent the club into the top four.
According to reports from Turkey, his temporary suitors are not currently exploring a permanent deal for next summer, although the striker’s early season form has caught the eye of at least one other club from the same division. It is claimed that Trabzonspor had contacted Southampton to tentatively enquire about a potential fee but were told that another unnamed Super Lig club had also made enquiries.
The Championship club are expected to want the player permanently off their books next summer, although they will want to claw back as much as their initial outlay as possible. His current form will certainly help their cause.
It’s perplexing as to why Onuachu couldn’t replicate his form from Genk and Danish outfit Midtjylland at Southampton, especially because he has also hit the ground running at Trabzonspor. However, his time at St Mary’s was stop-start and he was never really given a consistent crack within the first team setup.
It will be interesting to see if there are any other Turkish clubs interested in him next summer, or whether this is just a play by the Saints to attempt to raise the price.
