SOUTHAMPTON finally have their man, Nathan Wood, after bidding for him in the 2023/24 season and not landing him, Wood makes the move this summer from Swansea and has joined on a four-year contract.
Wood, a centre-back by trade, rejoins old Manager, Russell Martin.
He becomes the fifth Saints summer signing coming in behind, Adam Lallana, Taylor Hwarwood-Bellis, Charlie Taylor, and Ronnie Edwards.
The 22-year-old said ‘it was really easy’ to come down to the South Coast, with a major influence from the manager.
He said, “We had a good relationship, so we kept in touch through the past year, and when the phone call came and it was like, ‘we want you to come’, it was easy really.”
You may recognise his name, or you may not, the young Englishman was in a BBC Iplayer series, ‘Our School’, so if you want to see a young aspiring Nathan Wood go on YouTube to give it a watch.
‘Our School’ followed the new year seven around the school to see how they’d adapt to life and Wood’s story of him getting into the football team was in an episode, football wasn’t the first time he was on TV, football wasn’t his first TV rodeo.
Born in 2002 – feel old yet? – Wood has 66 appearances in the Championship for Swansea and got his first senior career goal last season.
Wood will be looking to help keep Southampton up in the Premier League next season and manager Russell Martin thinks highly of him.
Martin; “Nathan is a player I know and trust from our time together at Swansea, and someone I also tried to sign in my first job at MK Dons. He’s a top defender with tremendous physical qualities, great pace and calmness on the ball.”
Wood will need calmness on the ball with how Martin likes to play his football – passing around the back -, and the centreback will be familiar with his style of play, so Wood should slot right in.
