Saints’ summer meltdown begins as club axes four

Dearest Cuco Martina: We will always have Arsenal and, really, that is about where the line is drawn.

Martina was amongst four players including Lloyd Isgrove, Harley Willard and short-term signee Martin Caceres to be released by Southampton as the summer of never-ending speculation kicks off.

The Curacao international made 18 appearances for Southampton this season, but had just six Premier League starts in 2016/17. He, however, was heavily used in the club’s failed Europa League campaign where he played in five of the six group games.

Isgrove, who came through the Southampton Academy, meanwhile departs after never securing a permanent breakthrough into the first team. He’s spent a majority of his senior career on loan with spells at Peterborough, Sheffield Wednesday and Barnsley.

Caceres made just one appearance, which came at Middlesbrough, during his short-term stay on the South Coast. It was the 30-year-old’s first action in over a year.