MANCHESTER United have enquired about Saints midfielder Mario Lemina.

The Gabonese international has also attracted interest from fellow Premier League sides Leicester and Arsenal.

However, all three have fallen short of Saints'  valuation.

The Daily Echo understands that the St Mary's outfit are looking to recoup the £15m they paid Juventus when they signed Lemina in 2017.

Over the weekend the midfielder admitted to wanting a fresh challenge, saying: “The last 4 months have not been easy for me, with my injury. The coach put his team together. I want to start afresh. So why not leave?

“We have very good discussions with the club. We are in agreement.”

Lemina was left at home for this week's pre-season trip to Austria, along with Charlie Austin, Sam Gallagher, Guido Carrillo and Jordy Clasie.

Despite being excluded from Ralph Hasenhuttl's squad, the quintet will continue training for the new season at Staplewood.

Having already splashed out on Moussa Djenepo, Che Adams and Danny Ings, Hasnehuttl will be looking to trim his squad down.

And, with his squad for Austria in mind, it leaves little to the imagination of who could be moving on.

Lemina and Austin will be joined at Staplewood by Sam Gallagher, Guido Carrillo and Jordy Clasie.

Austin is also looking to seal a move away from Saints in order to play regular first team football.

The 30-year-old striker is said to have attracted interest from Sheffield United and Aston Villa.

But anything substantial is yet to materialise, with Saints valuing him at around £10m. 

Fellow striker Gallagher was also left at home for the week-long trip to Austria.

However, the former Plymouth lad is subject to firm interest from the Championship, where he has spent a lot of his time out on loan.

It’s claimed that Wigan have joined Blackburn Rovers and Brentford in the queue to secure Gallagher’s service.

And although a move away looks inevitable, the Daily Echo understands that a transfer isn’t imminent.

Carillo and Clasie both returned to the club last week following loan spells away from Saints.

But with Hasnehuttl leaving the pair behind, it looks as though they could be on their way out of the club this summer.

Clasie is wanted by Dutch side AZ Alkmaar, having spent last season on loan with Feyenoord.