According to Football Insider, Southampton have opened talks to sign Newcastle defender DeAndre Yedlin on a loan deal before the close of the transfer window on Monday night.

What's the word?

The USA international has yet to feature for Steve Bruce's side this season, with Javier Manquillo and Emil Krafth both appearing to be ahead of him in the pecking order.

The 27-year-old has made just two appearances in this new campaign, with both of them coming in the Carabao Cup, whilst he hasn't even made the match-day squad in three out of the four of Newcastle's Premier League games.

Now, Football Insider claim Southampton are ready to take him off Steve Bruce's hands for the season, and that the Tyneside club have given the green light for his loan exit.

Bruce needs to step in

On the face of it, calling for Bruce to jump in and intervene just when a fringe player looks to be heading out of the door, seems far-fetched. But there are two key reasons why the Magpies should really think twice before letting Yedlin make his way down to the south coast.

First, and most importantly, it doesn't make sense financially - in the long-term at least - to let him leave on loan. Yedlin has just 12 months left on his £30k-a-week contract at St James' Park, and if he were to move to Southampton for the season, then Newcastle would have to just watch him walk away on a free transfer come the end of the campaign.

Whilst his wages would be off the books, the Magpies will have missed the last true opportunity to actually get in some kind of money for Yedlin, and potentially have it reinvested elsewhere. He may not command big-money, but especially in this current climate, every little does actually help.

Then, there's the footballing reason. Whilst Southampton and Newcastle aren't exactly fierce rivals, they have shown early signs this season of being right in the mix for a top-ten finish, being separated by only one point and two places (9th and 11th respectively). Why would the Magpies want to strengthen a team who are competing for similar objectives as them? Letting Yedlin leave at least on loan does have its merits, but Bruce may be wise to just sit back and take stock.