Victor Wanyama would represent the “perfect” signing for Saints, according to the club’s former star, Gordon Watson.

Cardiff, who have been Saints’ main opponents for the Celtic midfielder, yesterday ended their pursuit of the player after refusing to match the Scottish side’s asking price.

The Bluebirds had a £10m bid rejected for the 22-year-old, but are adamant they will not go any higher than that, and will only rekindle a deal if the SPL champions lower their valuation.

Saints have already seen a £12m offer accepted for the Kenyan international, but it has been well publicised that talks stalled when personal terms were being discussed.

Despite that, manager Mauricio Pochettino confirmed on Thursday that a deal was not yet dead.

However, Saints will only complete the signing if Wanyama’s representatives lower their demands, which the club feel are excessive.

With Cardiff out of the running, barring a change of heart from Celtic at least, Saints’ position in any negotiations has strengthened even further.

Should they complete the signing of Wanyama, who is currently with Celtic on their pre-season training camp in Germany, it will be a move welcomed by Watson.

The ex-Saints forward, who has also worked as a scout, is a big fan of the player and believes he would be an ideal fit in the team.

“I’ve seen a lot of him and he’s perfect,” he said.

“Obviously, I heard that he couldn’t agree terms, but he is the perfect player that we actually need at Southampton.

“He’s big, strong, wins the ball, gives it, turns defence into attack and he gets on the end of things from set pieces.

“Having someone like him in the middle of the park would probably free up Morgan (Schneiderlin) to do a bit more damage in the final third.”

Wanyama moved to Celtic two years ago for £900,000 from Belgium side Beerschot AC, where he made his breakthrough as a professional.

Since joining the Glasgow giants he has made 91 appearances in two seasons, scoring 13 goals and winning two SPL titles, as well as the division’s young player of the year award.

Wanyama has also been capped 25 times for Kenya and is now captain of his country.