SAINTS legend Francis Benali joked there is “never a dull moment at Chelsea” but admits he was surprised to learn of their deadline day bid for Romeo Lavia.

As the summer window was ticking shut, the Blues – desperate for reinforcements – made a £50million verbal proposal for 18-year-old midfielder Lavia.

The Belgian youth international had only completed his permanent transfer from Manchester City to St Mary’s just over six weeks earlier himself, costing a fee around £12million.

And after just five Premier League appearances and a goal in the victory over Chelsea, Todd Boehly and the Stamford Bridge hierarchy were fully convinced of his potential.

Despite Lavia being injured since and expected to return in October, the proposal was rejected by Saints – although Benali admits these situations are likely dilemmas.

“Never a dull moment at Chelsea. You look at the money they spent and they money they’ve had to spend, it’s a good thing for the league,” Benali told Southampton International Boat Show.

“It was interesting that a late bid came in for Romeo Lavia, however, from what I’ve seen from him and the other young players, it doesn’t surprise me that someone like Chelsea has expressed interest.”

The 389-appearance hero added: “If the young players continue to impress and perform as they have done so far, there is bound to be interest from other clubs, which is going to be tough for Southampton.

“It causes a dilemma for the club in how they manage and deal with that, as they’re talented players.”

Benali, equally impressed by the resolve Saints showed to turn down a mega-money offer for one of their key players, believes the club had a good summer of trading.

As well as trimming the squad of wantaway players, Saints brought in 10 new faces – including four on deadline day alone.

“I've been really impressed with the transfer business that Southampton did in the summer,” Benali insisted.

“I'm sure like every single club, there's a player or two that maybe they missed out on or there was a target that they would have liked to secure the signing of, but that is just the nature of the business, but there's been money available to the manager to spend and they've spent it extremely wisely.

  “There's clearly going to be potential for improvement of the players that the club has signed and the players that are at the club already and if there is going to be any market movement in the future, and you're going to probably say is, it's highly likely, there's going to be the potential to make some big sums of money on these players, when they eventually come to a time to move in the future.”

He added: “The exciting thing is that they’re here in a Saints shirt and I'm looking forward to seeing them develop Some of the older players, I think there's that balance, which is key within a dressing room, and a playing squad.

“It’s all about striking the balance from having the younger players in, who are fearless and provide excitement to the game, but you also need the experience and knowledge of players that have been around the environment and played for several years in games, to help them settle in and show them the ropes.

“Someone like James Ward-Prowse has got a key role, in that not only is he club captain, but he’s also been at the club for many years, so he provides that leadership on and off the pitch.”

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