Former Southampton star Brett Ormerod laments the fact that players such as Virgil van Dijk have too much control over their clubs.

In his attempt to force a move away from Southampton, van Dijk has handed in a transfer request this summer despite only signing a new deal last season.

Ormerod said: "You could say it's the modern-day footballer now. He signed a new deal but, in some ways, contracts sometimes aren't worth the paper they're printed on.

"Unfortunately for Southampton, they're often caught between a rock and a hard place as some of their players will want to make – as they'll perceive it – a step up.

"Van Dijk is on a fair amount of money and there's no doubt the club will get a huge profit if they sell him and players often seem to get their own way now.

"Perhaps there needs to be more of a balance between player and club power and the Bosman ruling has arguably put too much control in players' hands.

"He was happy to sign a contract and one would like to think that he would have wanted to see it out, but situations change in football and heads get turned."