Southampton manager Russell Martin has revealed why Carlos Alcaraz did not feature in the draw against Huddersfield Town.
Saints drew 1-1 at the John Smith’s Stadium on Saturday afternoon, with Adam Armstrong giving Saints the lead on the stroke of half-time.
But Ben Jackson scored for the hosts in the 87th minute to give the Terriers their second point in five games.
Martin confirms why Saints star did not feature on Saturday
Speaking to the Daily Echo, Martin confirmed that Alcaraz picked up an injury whilst on international duty whilst with Argentina’s under-23’s. he was an unused substitute against Huddersfield.
“Carlos got pulled off after 45 minutes with a tight quad while away with Argentina.
“He didn’t train much after that and didn’t play in their second game. He’s had a week of not doing anything really and then travelled 16 hours on Thursday.
“That’s not conducive to a good performance, so we are trying to manage him. There’s a busy period coming up.
“He never wants to not play but he understood and now we will have a fresh Carlos for the next two games if we put him in the team.”
Alcaraz starting to become regular but could leave
After a mixed start to this season, starting the first three games before failing to start in the next four, he has now settled in under the management of Russell Martin with a nice run of games, starting six of his last eight.
The Argentinian has already been the subject of interest from Premier League sides, including high-flying Newcastle United.
There was interest in Alcaraz in the summer after Southampton were relegated from more Premier League sides and abroad. Despite the interest, he remained at the Saints after no satisfactory bid was submitted.
Brighton were the club previously pushing hardest and were said to have offered a fee of £19 million for his signature. An offer that the Saints refused expecting closer to the £26m mark.