Southampton fight off significant competition to secure signing of 'talented' Linfield youngster

The 16-year-old is the latest Irish League youngster to seal a dream summer move and he will link up with Ballymena United attacker Luke Hawe in the youth ranks at St Mary’s.

Anderson has been on the books of Linfield since he was nine and made his senior Blues debut in last season’s Irish Cup fifth round victory over Wellington Rec at Windsor Park, coming on as a second half substitute.

The Northern Ireland youth international, who captained his country at the 2024 Victory Shield, will continue his development with the Saints and the club’s head of academy recruitment, Chris Robinson, is delighted to have won the race for Anderson’s signature.

"We're delighted that Calum is joining us, there were a lot of clubs interested in him which is not surprising,” said Robinson. "He is a talented player who is a natural leader too, and we hope he'll be an exciting addition to the club's Academy."

Anderson’s arrival at Southampton continues a proud Northern Ireland connection with the Championship side – the likes of former international stars Steven Davis, Chris Baird and Jim Magilton all previously spent time at the club.

"I'm delighted to be here,” said Anderson. “Southampton is a club with a rich history of producing young talent and when the offer came I thought it was the best environment to develop myself.

"There's a lot of big names that have come out of the Academy, and I want to come here and hopefully do the same."

After announcing Hawe’s arrival from Ballymena earlier this year, Robinson admitted Southampton were keeping a close eye on young talent from Northern Ireland.

"We are delighted to welcome Luke to the club, he's a talented and hard-working lad who we have been tracking for a while,” he said at the time. "There's a lot of talent in Northern Ireland and the IFA’s academy set-up really helps prepare players in a region we're looking to further our interest in.

"I'd like to give thanks to Ballymena for their cooperation in the deal and we're looking forward to seeing Luke continue his development here at Southampton."