Southampton manager Mauricio Pellegrino axed Virgil van Dijk on Saturday — then opened the door for the Dutchman to leave next month.
Pellegrino took the shock decision to drop Van Dijk against Chelsea, though he insisted the central defender was rested.
Van Dijk’s attempts to quit Southampton dominated last summer at St Mary’s.
The club’s £70million asking price proved prohibitive, but there was concrete interest from Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City.
Speaking after Saints’ 1-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge, Pellegrino admitted Van Dijk could be on his way in next month’s window.