According to reports in The Times on Wednesday, Southampton are the subject of a £190m bid from Chinese company Lander Sports Development.

The property development company had an offer of £180m rejected by Saints owner Katharina Liebherr in January, but the new amount is understood to be closer to her valuation of the club.

It is believed that Liebherr, who took over as owner following the passing of her father Markus in 2010, believes that the club needs further investment if they are to move to the next level.

The south coast outfit finished sixth last season, but look set to fall short of emulating that this term as they currently lie in 11th position with eight matches of the campaign remaining.

Any takeover would initially see Lander buying into the club, before taking full control at a later date.

Here are THREE ways the £190m takeover can help Southampton push for the Champions League…

They may keep their stars

It has become a common theme every summer for Southampton supporters since they returned to the Premier League in 2012 – seeing their best players leave for the bigger clubs in the English top flight.

But this investment could change that as Lander are seemingly willing to plough more cash into the club than Liebherr currently is, and that ambition – as well as the opportunity to pay bigger wages and bring in quality additions – could finally make the south coast outfit a side that players, such as captain Virgil van Dijk, want to stay at for the long-term.

Following so many impressive top-half finishes in the past few years, you get the feeling that Saints could have competed for the top four had they not faced an exodus each summer, but this could finally be their opportunity.

They can pay higher transfer fees

While clubs such as Crystal Palace and Everton have brought in players for fees of £30m-plus in recent times, Saints have been a little more cautious – and maybe rightly so.

Their club-record signing is Sofiane Boufal, who moved to St Mary’s from Lille for around £16m last summer, and many of the south coast outfit’s additions in recent times – such as Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Manolo Gabbiadini – have come in at a similar price range.

However, if the south coast outfit do want to compete and make the next step in the Premier League to push for the top four, they will know that they may have to pay bigger transfer fees – this takeover would help them do just that.

They can improve their facilities

Southampton already has one of the best academies in the country and they pride themselves on the development of their players at youth level.

This takeover would allow them to plough more money into improving their training facilities at the club’s Staplewood complex.

With Lander also being a property development company, the opportunity could be there to start looking at extending and developing the area around the 32,501-seater St Mary’s Stadium, which it’s fair to say isn’t the most picturesque scene right now.

Do you agree, Saints fans? Let us know below.