“Paul was caught in limbo”－ Southampton boss Russell Martin drops Onuachu transfer bombshell

Southampton coach Martin Russell has revealed that no club showed serious interest in signing Paul Onuachu during the last summer transfer window, Soccernet.ng reports.

Onuachu has had a difficult time at Southampton since he joined from Belgian club Genk. Recall that during his stay in Belgium, he was explosive, registering 85 goals and ten assists in 135 appearances. His brilliance helped Genk to the Belgian Cup in 2021.

Unfortunately for the 30-year-old striker he has failed to replicate that form in England. When he joined in January 2023, he struggled for playing time in his first six months and had to go on a season-long loan at Turkish Super Lig club Trabzonspor. There, he registered 17 goals and four assists in 25 games.

Due to his brilliance, there were talks that Trabzonspor were interested in acquiring his services last summer. However, those talks failed to materialize, and Onuachu had to remain at Southampton.

This season, the Nigeria international has been limited to just six Premier League appearances. He started his first game last week against Liverpool, and he put up an impressive showing.

Also, last weekend, the Nigerian was nominated for the FIFA Puskas award. So, he has attracted a lot of attention recently.

Speaking on Onuachu’s situation at the club, Southampton boss Russell Martin admitted that he wants the Super Eagles star to stay. He also revealed that Onuachu chose to remain at Southampton because there was not serious offer for his services.

“Yes, I think I want him (Onuachu) to stay. If he was going to go, I think it would have been in the summer for the club to reinvest the money,” Martin told Daily Echo.

“At the time, it was a few clubs interested but none of them were anywhere near serious enough for us to consider, and I think Paul was just caught in limbo for a bit.

“I think he thought he was going to leave and it hadn’t quite worked out, last summer he was here for probably five or six weeks before he was going.

“The whole time it was planned he was going to go because he cost a lot of money and he wanted a challenge at the top level if he could but he was brilliant.

“He was respectful and then so in January I’m sure there will be a few people that are interested in him again,” continued Martin.

“I’m sure there will also be a few people kicking themselves that they clearly didn’t quite want him enough in the summer.”

“For me, if Paul is happy, we’re really happy and we want him here as he can help us achieve what we want to achieve this season.”

Onuachu is currently struggling with a minor injury, but Martins’ statement means he could just have played his way into the starting eleven.

He will be looking to get more game time in the coming weeks and help Southampton stay afloat in the Premier League.