Latest News

Joe Aribo Set to Leave Southampton Ahead of January Deadline

Published

2 days ago

9:26 am

Joe Aribo Set to Leave Southampton Ahead of January Deadline

Nigeria international Joe Aribo is set to depart Championship side Southampton ahead of the January transfer deadline.

Southampton are still active in the market for reinforcements — particularly in attack — as the 7pm deadline on Monday, February 2 approaches. However, the club is also looking to trim its squad, with several players struggling for regular playing time.

Aribo is among those available for transfer this week, alongside winger Sam Edozie. The Saints had attempted to move both players on during the summer window but were unable to reach suitable agreements.

Speaking on the situation, Southampton manager Tonda Eckert confirmed that discussions are ongoing.

“There’s conversations going on at the moment,” Eckert said, as quoted by the Daily Echo. “It needs to make sense for the player first, but obviously also for the club.

“There are some good conversations taking place at the moment. Those situations are always a little bit more complicated — it’s never just one party involved.

“I think there are so many parties nowadays that need to agree for a deal to happen. It didn’t work out the way maybe some parties wanted it to, but the conversations are now heading in a good direction.”

Aribo has struggled for opportunities this season, making just seven appearances in the English second tier. His limited club involvement also saw him omitted from Nigeria’s squad for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.

The former Rangers midfielder, however, was part of the Super Eagles side that finished runners-up at the 2023 AFCON in Côte d’Ivoire.

With the deadline fast approaching, a move away from St Mary’s appears increasingly likely as Aribo looks to secure more regular game time in the next phase of his career.

Samuel Ahmadu

Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. On the back of domestic engagement since 2008, he began his international career journey at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.

See Full Bio