English Premier League side Southampton have agreed to pay up to £14 million to sign Belgian-born of Ghanaian descent Romeo Lavia from Manchester City this summer.
The highly-rated young defensive midfielder has been at the Premier League champions since joining from Anderlecht in 2020.
It was reported last month by UK tabloid, DailyMail, in June that the 18-year-old Belgian was a target for a number of clubs, but notably Southampton and Leeds United.
Manchester City were reluctant to let Lavia leave but will insert a buy back and sell-on clause for the teenager, who made his first-team bow in the Carabao Cup last season.
Lavia is yet to make a Premier League appearance for City, but made a single appearance in both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup last season, and was regularly part of Pep Guardiola's wider matchday squad.
The Brussel-born midfielder is eligible to play for Ghana at the international stage despite featuring for the Belgium U15, U19 & U21 national teams.
![2024 Ashanti Regional Inter-Schools Boys Soccer [Round 32]: Real AMASS, Adu Gyamfi, OWASS, all record convincing wins to cruise into next round and more](/images/thumbnails/mod_minifrontpage/33937_131.jpg)
