Southampton are attempting to quickly conclude a deal for Monaco’s Argentinian striker Guido Carrillo.

Manager Mauricio Pellegrino has been promised reinvestment this January following the £75 million sale of Virgil van Dijk and, with the team now only one point above the relegation zone and winless in the Premier League since November, a sense of urgency is developing about the situation.

There was an attempt to bring Theo Walcott back to a club he left 12 years ago, but he instead opted for Everton, and the focus now is on signing Carrillo. The 26 year-old has featured infrequently this season for Monaco in France’s Ligue 1 and Southampton hope to soon complete a deal that would cost around £15m.

Missing out on Walcott was still a considerable disappointment and, while they were reluctant to match Everton in terms of wages, they also discovered the added difficulty of attracting players in the context of their now precarious league position.