THREE young Manchester midfielders reportedly have admirers within Saints, as the club look to overhaul their squad next season.

The St Mary’s side have already responded to the slide down the Premier League table, from ninth to 15th, with one win in the final 12 league matches.

First-team coaches Dave Watson, Craig Fleming and Kelvin Davis have all departed the club following the conclusion of the season.

Saints will announce new coaches in due course, with the players joining back up for pre-season by the end of June.

And Saints could have a new-look squad in some areas, with Fraser Forster reportedly on the brink of a free transfer to Tottenham Hotspur and Shane Long and Willy Caballero also on expiring contracts.

Three young midfielders from the two Manchester giants have been credited with interest and admirers from Saints, according to The Athletic.

One of those is James Garner of Manchester United, who spent this past season on loan with Nottingham Forest and could help them seal promotion via the playoffs this weekend.

Daily Echo: Manchester United youngster James Garner (Pic: PA)Manchester United youngster James Garner (Pic: PA)

The 21-year-old has made 43 Championship appearances and been integral to Forest’s path to Wembley Stadium, facing Huddersfield on Sunday.

The report adds that new Manchester United manager, Erik Ten Hag, wants to assess Garner in pre-season before deciding his next steps.

Meanwhile, Manchester City’s academy products James McAtee and Cole Palmer have also reportedly been mentioned to The Athletic.

Daily Echo: Manchester City youngster Cole Palmer (Pic: PA)Manchester City youngster Cole Palmer (Pic: PA)

The England youth international pair helped City continue their dominance of youth football with a Premier League 2 title, and have made first-team appearances already for Pep Guardiola.

McAtee, 19, has made two Premier League appearances for the Etihad side, while Palmer, 20, has made four – and scored in the Champions League.

Depending on how Guardiola views his squad next season, either could potentially go out on a loan deal similar to that of Armando Broja’s this season.

Saints have James Ward-Prowse, Oriol Romeu and Ibrahima Diallo as regulars in midfield. The Frenchman and academy graduate Will Smallbone still have some developing to go to impact at Premier League level.

That is time they will likely get at Saints, but supporters, Ralph Hasenhuttl and Sport Republic all need to see immediate improvement on this season's finish.

The two Manchester City products will also provide dynamism in Hasenhuttl's 10s, where Saints have failed to find cutting edge for much of the campaign.

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