Russell Martin addresses Southampton summer outgoings as Burnley target Nathan Tella return

It comes amid ongoing speculation that Burnley are still interested in bringing last season’s loan star Nathan Tella back to Turf Moor, albeit this time on a permanent basis.

The 23-year-old helped fire the Clarets back to the top flight with 19 goals as Vincent Kompany’s men claimed the Championship title.

It’s claimed the Saints want around £15m for the winger, who still has two years remaining on his contract on the South Coast, but so far Burnley have yet to make their move.

Speaking in his first interview since making the move to the St Mary’s Stadium from Swansea City, Martin conceded sales will be necessary following the club’s relegation to the second tier.

“There will be people leaving, of course. That happens when you have such a tough season and you leave the Premier League,” he told Southampton’s YouTube channel.

“But it’s also not as easy. I’ve been there, every player thinks they will go back to the Premier League but it’s not always that easy. But we will lose people, there’s no doubt about it.

“The transfer window drags on for far too long. Ideally it would shut before the season starts so we might find ourselves in a position where we have players playing for us who might still end up leaving.

“But it’s our job to navigate through that as smoothly as possible. The players that are here, while they’re here, the only expectation is they give everything they’ve got for the club and for themselves.

“If everyone does that, we’ll have no problem at all. If some people decide that’s not their intention then they just won’t be part of the group for long, so I hope that isn’t a problem.

“Of course there will be people coming in and leaving, but I can’t give you any numbers yet because it’s something with no certainty and it can change really quickly.”

Tella moved to Southampton from Arsenal as a teenager and has so far made 41 appearances for the club.