'Leaving Lazio was a mistake'

By Football Italia staff

Southampton outcast Wesley Hoedt says he regrets leaving Lazio for the Saints, describing the move as a ‘mistake’.

Hoedt spent two seasons with Lazio, playing 61 times and winning the Supercoppa, before joining Southampton in 2017 as a replacement for Virgil van Dijk.

However, the €17m transfer has not worked out and he is currently on loan at Belgian side Antwerp.

“[Ralph Hasenhuttl] told me he wanted to give me a second chance, but I never got one, to begin with,” the Netherlands defender told Sport/Foot Magazine.

“I trained hard for six weeks, but it was for nothing. After another chat with him, I decided to prove my worth elsewhere.

“I made a mistake [leaving Lazio]. I had a five-year contract with them. After two years, they offered to extend it for another five, with better conditions.

“Italian football culture is very professional, but everyone wants to play in the best League in the world, the Premier League, and the Southampton offered me a contract that I couldn’t refuse.

“Unfortunately, the club had two bad seasons and things didn’t go as I thought they would.”

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