Former Southampton star Adam Lallana has refused to rule out a return to St Mary’s this summer – ten years after he left.
The 36-year-old is set to become a free agent when his contract at Brighton expires at the end of June.
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talkSPORT understands the 34-cap England international is in talks with the Saints over an emotional return.
Lallana came through Southampton’s academy, where he scored 60 goals in 265 appearances in all competitions between 2006 and 2014, helping them progress from League One to the Premier League.
And he could now be on his way back to his old stomping grounds after Southampton secured an instant return to the top flight after beating Leeds in the Championship play-off final.
His future was the topic of discussion during his appearance on talkSPORT Drive on Tuesday, which took place at the James Maddison Invitational at Centurion Golf Club in St Albans.
Co-host Andy Goldstein asked the 2019 Champions League winner about speculation linking him with a return to Southampton.
To which Lallana, smiling, simply said: “We’ll see.”
He continued: “I’m going to take a little break now, a little vacation.
“It was a difficult season with Europe and just to manage the schedule I was living away from home.
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“So I just want to take some time to rest, be with my family and I’m pretty confident that I’m going to continue playing.”
Darren Bent then intervened, insisting Lallana should be “proud” to see Southampton beat Leeds to seal their return to the Premier League.
This led the cult Liverpool hero to say: “Russell (Martin) has done an incredible job there, not just promoting them.
“But losing (James) Ward-Prowse, the captain, he restructured the team, brought in a few loans – Taylor Harwood-Bellis (from Manchester City), who I know from the (England) Under-21s.
“Flynn Downes (of West Ham), who I think has been outstanding all year, Adam Armstrong has scored goals and there are some young players coming through.
“It feels a bit like the Southampton of old, and the values that the club represents, he (Martin) has brought back.
“I think it’s important, so overall I think he’s done an amazing job, it’s not easy to get promoted out of this league with some teams.
“The top three (Leicester, Ipswich and Leeds) finished with a record points record this year, so it’s not easy, and it won’t be easy to stay in the Premier League.
“The three that went up (Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton) all went down this year.”
Lallana is not the only former Southampton star who could return to the south coast, as talkSPORT understands West Ham striker Danny Ings is also on the club’s radar.
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