Cameron Archer may already have dropped transfer stance hint amid Sunderland and Leeds United links

Southampton forward Cameron Archer may already have dropped a hint over his potential stance on leaving the Saints this month, amid reported interest from Sunderland and Leeds United.

The 23-year-old has emerged as an apparent transfer target for the Championship promotion rivals, with TBR Football stating that the Black Cats are considering a move for him. The attacker signed for Southampton from Aston Villa in a £15 million deal back in August, but has only made ten Premier League starts so far this season.

It is within this context that Sunderland are said to be “ready to make a bid”, but if they are to be successful, they will have to fend off rival interest from Elland Road. According to the report, Leeds are “currently holding talks with Southampton over a deal”, and find themselves in “pole position” to land the forward. It is also suggested that the Saints would be happy to let Archer to leave on loan over the coming days, but will “insist on an obligation for Leeds to buy him permanently if they achieve promotion to the Premier League”.

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But what would Archer’s stance be on a transfer away from St. Mary’s over the coming days? While the player hasn’t explicitly addressed his future on the south coast, his first interview as a Southampton player last year certainly make for interesting reading in retrospect. According to the forward, a large part of his willingness to join the Saints was to link up with and work under then-manager Russell Martin, who has since parted company with the club.

He said: “That was one of the main reasons why I'm here, his [Martin’s] playing style, his coaching and trying to improve me as a player. It's not a bad place to do that in the Premier League with Southampton. I just want to keep scoring goals and improve myself as a player, and I don't think there's a better place to do that than with Southampton. I feel fit and ready, raring to go and get out on the pitch.”

Elsewhere, Archer went on to speak about reconnecting with Ben Brereton Diaz, with the two having previously shared a loan stint together at Sheffield United. Since then, however, the Chilean international has also left Southampton, sealing a return to Bramall Lane earlier this month.

Archer added: “I had a good chat with them when I came. I've seen them this morning, they've all got something positive to say, it's nice. Obviously I knew Ben from last year. I had a good chat with him, so it's nice to have. Me and Ben, we love to run and get in behind – similar playing style and we can try and do well on the pitch together.”

It is also worth reiterating that Archer has found consistent game time hard to come by in recent months, and has started less than half of Southampton’s 23 Premier League fixtures so far this term. Addressing his player’s lack of minutes around the turn of the year, new Saints boss Ivan Juric said: "In this moment, everybody is frustrated. The players that have started, me, my wife. We are frustrated. In this moment, I don't think that players can think about themselves. They have to think about the club."

Following a recent outing for Archer, Juric added: "He played well, I think for his first game after a long time. I can say that he worked very hard in just two weeks with a good mentality. [That was] his problem in the past, they told me. I think he did 55 minutes okay. For the first time, I want to put [Adam] Armstrong together [with Archer]. Maybe they give us something more, but I am satisfied."

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