In the January transfer window, Sky Sports revealed that Southampton were considering a renewed attempt to sign Genk right-back Joakim Maehle.

In that same article, Sky Sports stated that Ralph Hasenhuttl was open to adding another centre-back to his ranks, with RB Salzburg's Marin Pongracic said to be a 'long-term' target for the Saints.

However, the Croatian eventually joined Bundesliga outfit VfL Wolfsburg, where he has endured somewhat of a nightmare start at his new club.

After a fairly steady debut against Paderborn, in which he helped his side to a 4-2 win despite registering zero successful tackles and also picking up a yellow card, Pongracic had a forgettable second outing for the German club.

The 22-year-old was part of a backline that conceded inside the opening 13 minutes against Fortuna Dusseldorf, where he once again failed to make a tackle - nor did he record a single clearance or interception on this occasion - during his time on the pitch.

Things went from bad to worse in the 48th minute when he received a straight red card with his side already 1-0 down, leaving his teammates with a mountain to climb.

Quite humorously, Wolfsburg actually grabbed an equaliser just two minutes after Pongracic had been dismissed, before holding out for a point to take them ninth in the Bundesliga.

The centre-back is still young and undoubtedly has a lot to learn in the game, although it can be said that he has endured a nightmare start to life at his new club.

Southampton perhaps needed to sign a new centre-back after allowing Maya Yoshida to depart on deadline day, which left Hasenhuttl with only Jannik Vestergaard to provide cover for first-choice duo Jack Stephens and Jan Bednarek.

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However, on the basis of Pongracic's start to life in Germany, it looks like the Saints may have dodged a bullet.

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