Southampton U21s had a box-office clash at St. Mary's on Tuesday night with the main team not in mid-week action in the Championship.

Indeed, Adam Lallana's raw group faced Juventus U21s in the Premier League International Cup, and Lallana's youthful camp managed to secure a spirited 1-1 draw against the visitors from Italy.

Princewill Ehibhatiomhan bagged the only Southampton goal of the night, to take his U21 tally for the season to a weighty 12 strikes.

With the Saints experiencing some troubles up top with Cyle Larin at risk of dropping out of the starting XI against West Ham United due to injury, it isn't the wildest shout to suggest that the 21-year-old could be in and around the first team picture for the game at the London Stadium.

Alongside Ehibhatiomhan, there is another very promising youth talent on the South Coast who perhaps hasn't been mentioned as much as the one-time Swindon Town loanee, who will also believe he's worthy of some first-team attention...

The other Saints youngster who is impressing

Thankfully, for the Saints youngsters wanting to make strides into the first team, there is a viable route into the senior fold.

Cameron Bragg is now a first team regular, having risen up the ranks, and Romeo Akachukwu has flirted with Tonda Eckert's starting XI in recent times, having scored earlier in the season in the EFL Cup against Colchester United.

Therefore, Ehibhatiomhan will believe his time will come shortly, alongside Sufianu Sillah Dibaga, who has been an assist king in Lallana's side this season.

Princewill Ehibhatiomhan scores GOALS ⚽️

His 12th of the season puts #SaintsFCU21s ahead against Juventus 👏 pic.twitter.com/OYCYqIRgWe

— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) October 20, 2026

The 19-year-old, who hails from Spain, would actually assist the young striker's opener against Juventus at St Mary's, as Dibaga ran forward with pace to burn, before perfectly teeing up his potent teammate to find the back of the net.

He now has a fantastic four goals and six assists next to his name for the U21s from only eight games this campaign, with a weighty 36 goal contributions under his belt, overall, lining up for the U18s and the U21s.

Dibaga does have a senior runout to shout about, too, with 57 minutes handed his way last season in the FA Cup against Leicester City.

Eckert will be aware of the creative teenager, with the left-side winger even admitting that he wasn't full to the brim with nerves when facing the Foxes, despite this outing being his first ever taste of men's action.

Would the German be tempted to throw him in during some testing Championship games to come?

It's not completely wild to think he might be compelled to throw Dibaga into the deep end, as his options down the flanks could do with some work.

Will he gain some first team minutes?

On the left flank, which is Dibaga's preferred spot on the pitch, Eckert doesn't have the most convincing back-up options to Leo Scienza.

Lewis Dobbin really isn't living up to his £9m billing at the moment, with zero goals and zero assists next to his name since making the statement switch to St. Mary's.

Additionally, Samuel Edozie does show bursts of quality here and there, but the general feeling is that the ex-Manchester City youngster would jump at a move away from the South Coast, if one arrived.

There is an opening for Dibaga, arguably, with the wide-eyed Spaniard also versatile enough to play on the right wing, as well, if needed, with Tom Fellows another unconvincing body down this channel, with only one goal to shout about from his unmemorable 326 minutes of Championship action this season.

Dibaga's Saints numbers (left/right wing):

To freshen up his choices, Eckert might go bold and reward Dibaga with a first team chance, as he has set the Premier League 2 alight, whilst Fellows and Dobbin have consistently put in forgettable performances.

The future looks extremely promising on the South Coast, with Ehibhatiomhan and Dibaga sticking out.

The question is, when will they be deemed ready for the senior fold?

In the case of Dibaga, he might be well-equipped for some brief cameos in the very near future, to give Eckert something different, away from persisting with some rather stale first team personnel.