Southampton recently bid farewell to a mainstay at the club, as Oriol Romeu decided to call time on his career at St Mary’s.

Having signed from Chelsea back in 2015, a £5m outlay marks incredible value given his reliable presence at the heart of the Saints engine room.

The Spaniard featured 256 times whilst on the south coast, and by the end of his tenure had struck up a finely balanced partnership with James Ward-Prowse.

He acted as the enforcer, and fans will certainly miss his 1.4 interceptions and 2.1 tackles per game from last season.

His absence will be felt heavily, but one man from their past who would have filled his vacancy with ease is Victor Wanyama.

The hulking midfielder was a dominant presence way before Romeu was around at the club, with his performances earning him his £11m move to Tottenham Hotspur.

It is clear that Mauricio Pochettino thought highly of him, to bring him along as he too had made that same switch.

The Kenyan midfielder featured 97 times for both Spurs and the Saints, but the season prior to his transfer was when he truly shone.

He recorded a 7.00 average SofaScore rating, whilst managing 2.3 interceptions and 3.1 tackles per game, a marked improvement from Romeu’s final season. He was labelled a “destroyer” who was “so powerful” by journalist Jack Rathborn that season.

The man who they brought in from Celtic in 2013 quickly established himself as a mainstay in the Premier League, with his defensive work second to none.

He was also liable to score the occasional thunderbolt, with his goal against Liverpool for Tottenham the best that comes to mind.

With a huge Romeu-shaped hole in their midfield now, adding a prime Wanyama back into the fold would be perfect for Ralph Hasenhuttl.

He was strong, a good passer and tackler, and had an incredible engine; ingredients perfect for the Austrian to work with.

If he could return, fans would quickly forget about their absent Spanish stalwart in favour of the return of the true midfield powerhouse.