da betobet： As reported by The Daily Mail, Southampton manager Claude Puel has added an interesting layer to Saints’ clash with West Ham United on Saturday by insisting he has no regrets about letting Jose Fonte leave the club for the Hammers.
What’s the story?
da apostebet： Southampton are in the midst of a significant defensive crisis right now with colossal centre-back Virgil van Dijk injured for two to three months. Puel also failed to add any defensive reinforcements in the January transfer window leaving Saints lacking depth at the back.
Despite all that, he has no regrets about selling club icon Jose Fonte to Slaven Bilic’s side ahead of the two sides meeting at the weekend.
Quoted by The Daily Mail, Puel said:
We cannot have regrets because when Jose left the club it was a good moment for him. This position was difficult since the beginning of the season and it was important to find a solution for Jose and the club. It was the best opportunity for a last contract for Jose.
We’re not sure if that’s veiled criticism of the Portuguese defender or simply to be taken at face value, but it certainly adds an edge to Saturday’s match. Will Puel end up regretting letting Fonte go by the end of the 90 minutes?
Club icon
Fonte’s exit was an emotional one given that the Southampton captain made close to 300 appearances for the Saints over the years, and was instrumental in their rise to become one of the Premier League’s most consistent clubs from a lowly League One status.
His departure has left a big gap at the back at St Mary’s, which is a real worry over the coming months with their latest injury crisis taking out Virgil van Dijk.
On a personal level, his incredible rise was highlighted this summer when he played every knockout game, including the final, at Euro 2016 as his Portugal side won the trophy for the first time.
He could now play a big part in Southampton’s demise at St. Mary’s on Saturday and will be hoping to put in a better performance for West Ham than his debut against Manchester City.
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