Star told he’ll regret failed £10.5m Southampton transfer as Leo Scienza joins instead

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To think, with just over a week remaining in the summer transfer window, Southampton coach Will Still found himself bemoaning a ‘complicated’ transfer market and the sluggish pace of developments at St Mary’s.

Over the next 12 days, however, Southampton signed no fewer than seven first-team players either on permanent transfers or loan deals.

While a month and a half passed between the arrivals of Damion Downs and Mads Roerslev, in the blinking of an eye St Mary’s became home to Finn Azaz, Tom Fellows, Casper Jander, George Long, and Elias Jelert, while Southampton landed a footballer with ‘exceptional qualities’ in former Heidenheim playmaker Leo Scienza.

A set-piece specialist capable of taking and creating numerous goalscoring chances from a variety of attacking midfield roles, that Scienza turned down nouveau-riche Paris FC for a promotion charge in England’s second tier would have come as a massive relief.

Especially after their long-running pursuit of Eduard Spertsyan came to nothing. Much to the bemusement for former Russia national team coach Leonid Slutsky.

Former Russia coach Leonid Slutsky says Eduard Spertsyan should have joined Southampton

It was, by the way, Spertsyan who Will Still was talking about when he told BBC Radio Solent on August 21st that a breakthrough was proving frustratingly elusive.

Both he and his agent confirmed that talks had taken place with Southampton. According to the Southern Daily Echo, one of the early Championship title favourites even submitted a £10.5 million bid.

A bid FC Krasnodar, who Spertsyan inspired to the Russian Premier League title last season, rejected.

Though, speaking to the ‘It’s Football, Brother!’ YouTube channel, Slutsky cannot help but wonder if the Russia-born Armenia international should have attempted to force through a move he feels would have taken Spertsyan’s career to the next level.

“Yes,” Slutsky responded when asked if Spertsyan should have seized the chance to join a club who may well be a Premier League side again soon enough.

“Southampton are better than Krasnodar, and the Championship is better than the Russian league. There is no doubt about [that] at all.

“It would be very difficult for him but, if he played in the Championship, he would then play in any league in the world,” adds Slutsky, who had a brief spell in charge of Hull City back in 2017.

“This is a ticket for a better career.”

Johannes Spors happy to land Leo Scienza from Bundesliga outfit Heidenheim

So, while the Saudi Arabian and Turkish transfer windows remain open for the time being, another summer looks set to pass by without one of the finest talents outside of Europe’s major leagues getting the move he has long been tipped for.

Though he does not seem like a footballer easily distracted by transfer talk. Edouard Spertsyan has the most goal contributions in Europe so far in 2025/26, with eight goals and four assists from just 12 Russian Premier League appearances.

Southampton will be hoping that, despite missing out on Spertsyan, despite losing both Mateus Fernandes and Tyler Dibling, the additions of Scienza and Tom Fellows leave Will Still with enough creativity in the final third.

No Championship player produced more assists last term than Fellows’ twelve at West Brom. Scienza, meanwhile, signed off at Heidenheim with a glorious free-kick against Wolfsburg.

“He has demonstrated his exceptional footballing qualities in the first few games of this season,” Heidenheim chairman Holger Sanwald told the Bundesliga club’s official website.

“Leo is someone we feel can adapt well to English football,” added Johannes Spors, Southampton’s sporting director. “He is a creative player, a progressive dribbler and a strong set-piece taker.

“He is a player who has consistently produced goals and assists in every league he has played, and is an exciting addition to our forward line.”