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As expected, the Czech national team and former Edinburgh goalkeeper Rudi Skacel will continue his career in an English lower league club, which finally completed negotiations for his acquisition and agreed to pay 1.6 million pounds.
The 27-year-old Skacel, who signed a four-year contract with Southampton last season, expressed his desire to leave the club despite performing excellently for Hearts in Edinburgh last season, scoring 17 goals, some of which came in the first eight matches of the season.
Hearts exercised their option to purchase the Czech from Marseille, but he did not participate in the club's preparations for the new season camp and did not play in the Champions League match against Siroki Brijeg. For a long time, it has been rumored that Southampton manager George Burley wanted to see Skacel on his team, and he specifically invited Skacel to Scotland and helped him shine.
"We waited a long time to be able to acquire him, but he will be worth it, as he has a strong character and will become a fan favorite. When he played for Hearts, he was fantastic, and he will be very useful to this club. To move up to a higher level, you need players who can score goals from different areas of the field, and I am confident that he can score in double digits from the defensive line," said G. Burley.
Southampton's coach pursued the Czech national team defender, who did not make it into the World Cup squad, all summer and finally reached his goal - the player was introduced in his new club before a friendly match against Panathinaikos in Athens, which is one of Skacel's former clubs.
