Southampton's Carabao Cup debutant spills the beans over choosing deviant move | OneFootball

Like other talents, Southampton prodigy O'Brien-Whitmarsh hopes to become a club starter soon. Surprisingly, still, unlike many, he chose a loan spell himself to return better than ever at St. Mary's.

Just assume, you are a young talent trying to rise up the academy ranks. What would be your pathway to the senior team? A typical response would be to try one's best and wait for key opportunities.

If you thought this, you aren't alone for sure. But, what remains a better yet riskier choice is to try out multiple loan spells yourself.

You know what, that's exactly what Southampton's Irish prodigy O'Brien-Whitmarsh has chosen.

To note, O'Brien-Whitmarsh joined the Saints after building a good reputation in his homeland in early 2024. Still, being 19, the midfielder enrolled in the U21 Southampton side naturally.

Now, it had been going brilliantly for O'Brien-Whitmarsh in the Premier League 2, but seeking an opportunity he took the risk. The risk to move out on a winter loan to League Two club Accrington.

Honestly, taking this decision amid a good-going campaign is not for many, but O'Brien-Whitmarsh reveals he was quite clear in his plans.

O'Brien Whitmarsh feels firm in his plans to succeed at Southampton

As quoted by the Daily Echo, he said: "Going out on loan was always the plan. I think I still wanted to just get more games under my belt and show the people in the building what I was capable of first."

Obviously, still, the midfielder's ultimate motive remains to succeed at Southampton only. Though debuted for the first team in a Carabao Cup fixture, O'Brien-Whitmarsh targets a starting role next season.

Positively, there's a real chance of this happening.

Just take a look at the current Southampton midfield. Don't you think, at times it feels quite disorganized? It definitely does.

In such an inconsistent system, a technically sound player like him, having brilliant chance creation abilities can fit in perfectly.

However, what remains key to this possibility is how O'Brien-Whitmarsh shows up in the upcoming preseason. Who knows, maybe he can be the next big thing for Southampton.