Southampton's hopes of signing Tammy Abraham this summer are over after the England international completed a move to Roma earlier this week.
What's the word?
Even before Danny Ings' departure for Aston Villa, Southampton were regularly linked with a move for Abraham, although Chelsea's asking price for the 23-year-old was always likely to be a sticking point in any transfer negotiations between the Saints and the Blues.
Ralph Hasenhuttl suggested before the transfer window that his club would target players for £10m or less this summer, and whilst they went slightly over budget when signing Adam Armstrong from Blackburn Rovers, they have brought in plenty of funds with the exits of Ings, Jannik Vestergaard, Angus Gunn and Mario Lemina.
Abraham completed his move to Roma in a deal reportedly worth £34m on Tuesday, and whilst that suggests that he was never likely to be a realistic option for the Saints this summer, there is no doubt that he would've been a stellar addition to Hasenhuttl's squad.
Would Abraham have been a good signing?
Although Armstrong made an excellent start to his Southampton career at Goodison Park last weekend, clinically finishing past Jordan Pickford to give the Saints the lead, you could argue that Hasenhuttl is missing a proven Premier League goalscorer in his side.
Che Adams has steadily improved during his time at St Mary's and looks set for a solid campaign, but he only managed nine league goals in total last season; whilst Armando Broja, who has joined on loan from Chelsea, has played just four minutes in the English top flight.
Therefore, signing someone such as Abraham, who hit 30 goals in 82 appearances for Chelsea during his time at Stamford Bridge, would've been a smart move by Southampton this summer.
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The Englishman, who was dubbed "unbelievable" by Jack Grealish after they shone together at Aston Villa in 2018/19, would've offered the Saints a different option up front due to his height and goal-poaching ability. Hasenhuttl will no doubt be disappointed that a move for him this summer is now officially off the cards for Southampton.
In other news... Southampton linked with relegated Premier League defender as Vestergaard replacement