Premier League side AFC Bournemouth are set to reject a bid for full-back Max Aarons from their south coast rivals Southampton. The Saints have reportedly made an offer of £6m for the 24-year-old, but Bournemouth are not willing to let him go.

The Cherries only signed Aarons from Norwich last summer for £7m but he is yet to make a major impact at the club. He made 20 league appearances last campaign, but many came off the bench as he was struggling with injuries all season.

He will be disappointed to have spent most of the year as a back up to veteran Adam Smith, who has been at the club for 10 years. Many Bournemouth fans were calling for him to be replaced last year, which persuaded the board to sign Aarons, but now with serious competition for his place in the team, Smith performed like he never had before, with many claiming that it was his best season in a Bournemouth shirt.

Southampton have bid £6m for Max Aarons which will be rejected
[@nickmashiter 🥇] #AFCB #SaintsFC pic.twitter.com/obE0S6WKxQ

— Talkcherries_afcb (@TalkBournemouth) July 2, 2024

There was a time when the defender was being monitored by the likes of Barcelona and Bayern Munich while he was at Norwich, and even though a move to one of Europe’s elite clubs never materialised, Aarons is still only 24, meaning that there is time for him to refind his potential.

Aarons came close to a move to Saint Mary’s last summer before deciding to settle a little further down the coast and play Premier League football at the Vitality Stadium instead.

Southampton boss Russel Martin knows Aarons quite well, because the full-back was coming through the ranks at Norwich while Martin was playing there. That could be a pull factor for Aarons who has yet to find his feet on the south coast, but the Saints will need to dig deeper into their pockets if they are to afford him.