Southampton defender Ryan Bertrand has reaffirmed his desire to remain at St Mary’s and sign a new potential contract, while also revealing his desire for a career with the club after he has finished playing.
Bertrand’s future has been the subject of intense speculation over the last few months, with the experienced left-back’s current £70,000-a-week contract running out at St Mary’s at the end of the season. However, the Saints are determined to keep hold of him and they are in talks over the prospect of a new deal, the details of which are being ironed out at the moment (Hampshire Live).
The defender was linked with a move to Arsenal in the January transfer window, with the Gunners reportedly interested in bringing him in to provide some competition and cover for Kieran Tierney, according to The Sun. However, it has also been reported that the 31-year-old was unlikely to accept a move to the Emirates Stadium as he would not have been a guaranteed starter every week.
Speaking to Hampshire Live, Bertrand has reiterated his wish to sort out his future at St Mary’s, preferring to be at a club where he will be guaranteed game-time for the next few years. He also opened up on a desire to sort out his long-term future after he has finished playing and suggested that the Saints are prepared to discuss that with him, revealing:
I love playing game after game after game, even in bad moments because you need the games to get it out of your system. I just love playing games. But I like to stay ahead of the curve of life and what I want to do next.
It is still a few years away, but when the time comes to stop I want to be prepared for those moments. I am sure the club will be more than willing to help and I am sure there will be avenues to go down.
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This is a very positive message coming from Bertrand and it now seems very likely that he will remain at Southampton unless something unexpected were to happen with the negotiations over a new contract. Keeping a player with his experience and quality would be a major boost for Ralph Hasenhuttl.
Southampton need to recruit some new full-backs this summer after the position was neglected in the January transfer window despite a dearth of options. The last thing they can afford is to lose Bertrand from their squad, so they need to work out any potential hold-ups and get the player to commit his future, which thankfully he wants to do.
Bertrand’s desire to remain with Southampton after he has finished playing suggests how much he has enjoyed his time at St Mary’s, and his long service to the club could give him a encyclopedic knowledge of how things run behind the scenes once he hangs up his boots. It would then be interesting to see the capacity in which the defender will want to work post-retirement.
