#2 Oriol Romeu
Oriol Romeu had long been tipped for stardom ever since his early days at Barcelona. However, he never really found a club that allowed him to shine, that was until his move to Southampton saw him become a regular first team player.
He has rewarded his side’s trust in him with a number of consistently solid performances that ended with him being named Southampton’s ‘Player of the Season’ for the 2016/17 campaign. Romeu has seamlessly filled the void left by Victor Wanyama’s departure to Tottenham at the start of the season and he has emerged as one of the top defensive midfielders in European football.
Despite interest from his beloved Barcelona, Romeu recently stated that he wants to buck the trend of Southampton’s summer departures and show loyalty to the club that has given him the support and confidence to succeed at this level.
It’ll be great to see this happen as it’s a rarity in modern day football and could be the right choice for Oriol, who has struggled to get many games at the likes of Barca and Chelsea in the past, but it may be a difficult decision for him this summer if some of Europe’s biggest clubs do come in seek of his services.