It is no secret that the board have been actively seeking investment in line with their promises made at the time of ousting Rupert Lowe. With Souness said to be at more than one Saints came this season, he looked the most likely candidate and at this early stage should not be ruled out.
However, the indications are that a far more spectacular bidder has emerged in the shape of Paul Allen, the world's 19th richest man with a forutne of some $18 billlion, level give or take with a certain Roman Abramovich of Chelsea.
It is still early days, but we do have a comment via the Daily Mail from the classic PR agency 'source close to Paul Allen': "He sees Southampton as a sleeping giant, a family-supported club with traditional values. We see the value in taking the brand global."
If true, this would see Saints join an increasing number of big clubs with wealthy foreign owners, enabling us to compete with the increasingly mega bucks world of the Premiership.