Southampton keen on Spezia’s Bartłomiej Drągowski

Southampton are battling Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth as they look to sign keeper Bartlomiej Dragowski from Spezia.

Who is Bartlomiej Dragowski?

The 25-year-old keeper, who has won two caps for Poland, is currently with the Italian side, but they endured a difficult season, and it ultimately ended in relegation on Sunday as they lost a play-off to Verona.

Therefore, Dragowski could be on the move, and the Daily Mail has revealed that the stopper is attracting interest from three clubs in England. Crucially, they add that he has a £9m release clause, although it’s unclear whether Spezia will sell at a lower price now they’re in Serie B.

They state that Southampton are rivalling Premier League pair Forest and Bournemouth for the keeper, although Forest’s priority is signing Dean Henderson on a permanent basis after his loan at the City Ground last season.

The goalkeeping position has been problematic for Saints over the past year, with Gavin Bazunu struggling after his arrival from Manchester City.

Alex McCarthy is still at the club as well, and it has been claimed that he is open to a move away, although it remains to be seen if that’s feasible, because he is said to be the second highest earner at St. Mary’s behind James Ward-Prowse.

If the move does happen, this would be Dragowski’s first spell in English football, but he does have plenty of top-flight experience having featured for Fiorentina prior to his move to Spezia.

Do Southampton need a new keeper?

This will be open to debate among Southampton fans, as Bazunu struggled significantly last season, but, in fairness, he did improve, and dropping down to the Championship could actually be what he needs to develop his game, as the talent is there.

Bringing in Dragowski would seem to be a very good signing, but the issue is the number of keepers already at the club. It would make little sense to add another keeper if McCarthy and Bazunu stay, as the resources could be better used elsewhere. But, we know the importance of a keeper to Russell Martin and the way he plays, so it’s an area they need to get right.

So, this is one to monitor over the coming weeks, but there’s a lot to happen with Southampton once Martin is confirmed as boss, and he will no doubt want to make plenty of changes to the squad as he looks to build a team that can play the style he demands.