Southampton are showing an interest in Hearts defender Aaron Hickey ahead of a potential summer swoop. According to the Daily Mail, Southampton and a number of other British sides are keen on signing Hickey in the coming months.
The report claims that Manchester City, Celtic, Everton and Crystal Palace are also interested in the left-back.
Hickey has been in impressive form for Hearts this season and it looks like he caught the eye of all of these clubs, who are now looking to snap him up this summer. He has started 26 games for the club in all competitions, despite being just 17.
This could be a decent signing for Southampton as they potentially look for a long-term replacement for Ryan Bertrand. The Saints man is now in his 30’s and could only have a few good years ahead of him before the club may need to consider replacing him.
If they sign Hickey this summer then they could already have that replacement ready to come into the team as and when he is needed. Signing him at an early age also allows him to learn from Bertrand and develop himself going forward. Bertrand is an experienced Premier League campaigner and could take Hickey under his wing and help him progress and be ready for when he is needed to come into Ralph Hasenhuttl’s team.
It is smart from the club to invest in younger players and continue to develop their own stars, rather than splashing out big money on experienced players with no resale value.
This should be something that they look to do throughout the squad, not just at left-back. Bringing in players under the age of 23 could be a good policy, both in terms of on the pitch development and what it could mean for the club’s finances off it.
