Southampton confirm Ryan Bertrand is set to leave the club amid Arsenal & Man City links

Southampton have confirmed that long-serving left-back Ryan Bertrand will leave the club at the end of this season when his contract at St. Mary’s expires.

Bertrand, who first joined the Saints on loan from Chelsea in 2014, has not agreed a new contract with the club and will therefore be formally released as a free agent on 30 June.

It brings an end to a seven-year association between Southampton and Bertrand, during which time he has played close to 250 times for the club as part of a team that finished in the Premier League top eight three seasons in a row and as high as sixth in 2015/16.

A Southampton statement explains that there is mutual recognition that “…now is the time to respectfully part ways and move forward on different paths.”

The statement added, “Everyone associated with Southampton would like to thank Ryan for his contribution to the history of the club, and for all the memories he has helped create for our fans. He will forever be welcome at St Mary’s and Staplewood and will always be a Saint.”

31-year-old Bertrand, famously a surprise starter for Chelsea in the 2012 Champions League final, is now tasked with finding a new club ahead of next season.

Earlier this week, Goal reported that Arsenal are among a handful of clubs tracking him. It is also said that Manchester City have made contact, perhaps as a cheap way to boost their domestic players quota and provide depth in a potentially problematic position.

Further afield, AC Milan and Monaco have also been linked and it is believed to be those two and Arsenal who are most in contention to sign the player.

Bertrand could serve as back-up and competition to Kieran Tierney at Arsenal, freeing up Bukayo Saka to play in his more effective attacking role full time. The Gunners similarly signed Portuguese full-back Cedric Soares at the end of his Southampton contract in 2020.

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