Southampton manager, Ralph Hasenhuttl, has admitted that rumoured Tottenham Hotspur target Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has been stripped of the Saints captaincy after he declined to sign a contract extension with the club.
Hojbjerg has just a year left to run on his contract at St Mary’s and Spurs have been established as the favourites to snap him up this summer (Football Insider).
The Denmark international has thrown multiple hints that he would be open to a move to the North Londoners (Football.London).
Hasenhuttl himself admitted last month that Southampton will have little choice but to sell the midfielder this summer as they cannot afford to let him leave as a free agent (BBC Sport).
The Austrian coach has now admitted that the 24-year-old will not be wearing the captain’s armband after refusing to extend his deal. However, he insisted that the former Bayern Munich man remains an important part of his team.
As quoted by The Independent, the Saints boss said: “No, [Hojbjerg] will not be captain.
“I spoke with him and we had an agreement, and made clear that if you decide not to extend your contract, you will not be captain of this team.
“I’ve spoken to him in the last few days and he knows that he is an important player for this club. I think we have found a good agreement.”
Spurs Web Opinion
All indications are that Hojbjerg is on his way out of St Mary’s this summer. While it does seem like he wants to come to Spurs, Southampton will want to sell him to the highest bidder. I am just worried that someone like Everton could swoop in ahead of us and land him if we leave it too late.
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