He’s perfect for Downes: Southampton will regret losing £5m midfielder

Naturally, taking other chances, like signing Ben Brereton-Diaz, hasn’t paid off at all. The former Blackburn Rovers

player has failed to score in his ten Premier League games and is still misfiring up top in his new uniform.

Additionally, several purchases have not lived up to expectations thus far. Flynn Downes, who signed a permanent

Saints contract in the summer, is one such example.

The former West Ham United player was crucial in the middle of the park for Martin’s team during their incredible

promotion run. He was a smooth operator who averaged an impressive 93% pass accuracy per Championship match,

but he hasn’t been as impressive for his South Coast team as they fight for promotion.

It likely hasn’t helped the 25-year-old’s situation that he has lacked a consistent partner centrally, with Southampton

now left to just curse the fact one ex-Saints star isn’t around to line up next to Downes to give the basement club a

sterner figure in the middle.

Former Southampton star perfect for Downes

After signing for £5 million, Oriel Romeu was a devoted servant to Southampton for seven years, therefore

Southampton supporters would have been understandably upset when he left St. Mary’s in the summer of 2022.

Romeu would go on to make an incredibly outstanding 256 appearances over that span, scoring eight goals and

dishing out six assists. In 2017, former Southampton manager Claude Puel praised Romeu, boldly comparing his

style of play as a holding midfielder to that of Chelsea star N’Golo Kante.

“Kante gives us the same attributes as Oriol since he is reliable and performs well in every game. It’s tough for

Chelsea without [Kante], and the same is true for us without Romeu. He’s a key member of this team because he can

do amazing work to recover the ball and initiate the action, so I think he’s not too distant from Kante.”

In addition to consistently delivering above-average performances, as the Frenchman was known for at Stamford

Bridge, Romeu could also score a spectacular goal from nothing like the one below against West Bromwich Albion.

Southampton would come to depend on their “fantastic” number six, as Ralph Hassenhuttl famously called him

while he was manager.

Romeu during his final Saints season
Stat (* = per game)	Romeu
Games played	36
Goals scored	2
Assists	2
Big chances created	4
Touches*	58.6
Accurate passes*	38.1 (82%)
Total duels won*	5.5
Stats by Sofascore

The table above, which shows his final season in England, makes it clear that Romeu would be a good addition to

players like Downes if he were still playing. The Spaniard is just as calm and collected on the ball as the former West

Ham player, but he also offers more bite and grit, winning an average of 5.5 duels.

Since leaving Southampton, he has also not given up. Romeu has gone on to become a sensation in his home country

for Girona, making 11 first-team appearances this season in La Liga, after briefly wearing a Barcelona uniform.

Downes hopes Romeu can lead his team to victory as he enjoys the glitz and glamour of the Champions League with

his current job.

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