Could Southampton be tempted to make a move for this fringe Premier League striker?
Southampton could have to call upon Divin Mubama to lead the line against Portsmouth on Sunday.
Cyle Larin has picked up an untimely back injury on international duty with Canada, and if the experienced marksman is ruled out for the crucial Championship clash, Tonda Eckert would have little choice but to start the Manchester City loanee, owing to his lack of back-up options up top.
It would be a downgrade, as Larin has a red-hot seven second tier strikes next to his name this season, next to Mubama only having one unconvincing goal, but the hope will be that the England U21 international can still cause Pompey issues, if he's thrust into the first team spotlight for such a nail-biting clash.
Down the line, Eckert will likely want more options up top, with a new striker in through the door a potential priority next summer, when Mubama returns to the Etihad.
Football League World has suggested that Eckert and Co should keep tabs on this fringe Premier League striker to bolster their attacking options...
The striker Saints could sign
The EFL-focused outlet has stated that the promotion chasers should have reserve Leeds United attacker Lukas Nmecha on their radar, with his current deal at Elland Road expiring next summer.
Alongside the Saints being noted as being a plausible next step for the German if his West Yorkshire contract isn't extended, Wrexham are also named, with the Welsh giants reportedly plotting a late move for the 27-year-old in the summer transfer window that didn't get off the ground in time.
If he becomes available for £0, it is logical that Phil Parkinson's men would go back in for Nmecha, but FLW reckon Eckert and Co. could gatecrash a move.
The outlet simply suggests that Nmecha could offer the Saints some much-needed depth in the centre-forward department, with the Hamburg-born forward also versatile enough to line up out wide.
It's all just speculative talk, of course, but he wouldn't be a bad option for the South Coast side to pursue, if they want to add in more depth on the cheap, with this numbers at Leeds impressive, despite such limited game time.
He wouldn't be a bad option
Formerly a product of the City youth academy, like Mubama, it has taken Nmecha a number of years to finally be a success in the Premier League.
He isn't a consistent starter for the Whites, but he does have an admirable goal return for Farke's men in the big time, with six Premier League goals next to his name from only 37 contests.
He very rarely starts, which makes these numbers a lot more impressive, with all six of those strikes coming last season, when he started just ten top-flight clashes.
Nmecha also has two assists to shout about when studying his 2026/27 numbers, despite only amassing 213 total minutes in league and EFL Cup action.
Farke has complemented Nmecha for how unflappable he always appears, with a goal off the bench on his Premier League debut against Everton hailed as "ice-cold" by the 49-year-old.
He isn't going to be a breathtaking addition, but he could be a smart free transfer addition, all the same, as he would clearly be good enough to compete with Larin in the Championship, or even in the Premier League.
He has 16 Bundesliga goals on his career CV, too, alongside 14 strikes in the Belgian top-flight, so he has largely stood out as an understated success, wherever he has been during his roving playing days to date.
Nmecha might well pull on Saints red and white down the line, as it's not out of the realms of possibility that the South Coast outfit would be keen to land the Hamburg-born striker as a shrewd bit of business next summer, away from FLW's speculative reporting, having won the likes of Keven Schlotterbeck recently in an under-the-radar swoop.
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