As per latest reports by TEAMtalk, Southampton are interested in luring Celtic’s blossoming youngster, Kristoffer Ajer, to St. Mary’s in the summer. However, they will face competition from Tottenham Hotspur, Borussia Dortmund and Watford are also interested in signing him.
Ajer emerged through the youth ranks of Raelingen and Lillestrom and started his senior career with Norwegian outfit, Start. He was brought to the Celtic Park in 2016 and was loaned out to Kilmarnock in the January transfer window of 2017. Capable of plying his trade as a centre-back as well as a central defensive midfielder, he has shown immense potential from the early stages of his career.
However, he wasn’t given much recognition prior to this season and he started the 2017-18 campaign as the fourth-choice centre-back. The Bhoys’ defence has struggled at times owing to the lack of personnel as some of the key defenders have picked up injuries, making Brendan Rodgers’ job much harder. Ajer, therefore, got his chance and he certainly has made his presence felt this season.
The 19-year-old has stepped up to the call of his manager and has shown immense maturity and calmness at the back. He has read the attacking endeavours of the opposition well, made some important tackles and interceptions and most importantly, the confidence which he has shown while doing so has given fans hope that he could be the next big thing after Tierney. Frankly speaking, it isn’t surprising to see him being monitored by other clubs.
Southampton have been timorous throughout this campaign in the Premier League and are 18th in the league table, having collected just 28 points from 31 games. The English outfit are certainly in the relegation battle and it will take some effort to get out of the bottom three.
Irrespective of what happens, they would need reinforcements in the summer and Ajer seems like a pretty good option. However, the Norway international might not be very inclined towards joining a Championship side in case Southampton get demoted to the second tier of English football.
Although they are renowned for giving youngsters a lot of game time, Spurs and Borussia Dortmund are no different and Ajer might be tempted to leave for a club of a higher stature.