Tyler Dibling: The low-socked dynamo shining for Southampton after calling it quits at Chelsea

Born in Exeter in 2006, Dibling started out at local club Axminster Town, where his dad played for the men’s team, before joining neighbouring Millwey Rise aged five. It was from there that he was first picked up by Southampton in 2012, and after a year with Exeter City in his hometown, he would re-join the Saints in 2014 and went on to spend eight years in the famed academy that produced the likes of Gareth Bale and Theo Walcott.

Viewed as another potential gem, Dibling was already training with the Under-18s at the age of 15, and he was rewarded with the offer of a future first professional contract in October 2021 to follow his two-year scholarship.

However, with the midfielder still free to agree a move elsewhere before he turned 17 and amid unprecedented interest from other clubs including Newcastle and Chelsea after an impressive 2021-22 campaign, he was poached by the Blues in July 2022 after accepting a lucrative package with a view to a pro contract in 2023.

That wasn’t the end of the story, though; a shy 16-year-old, Dibling struggled to adapt to his new surroundings at Cobham, making only two appearances for the U18s before calling it quits and returning to Southampton just two months after he had departed in September 2022.

• The big break

  Playing well above his age grade, including making his debut for the U23s at the age of 16, Dibling had generated plenty of interest during the 2021-22 season before his ill-fated switch to Chelsea, as he made 13 goal contributions in just 22 appearances.

  Among those was the hat-trick against Newcastle’s U23s that thrust him into the spotlight. A three-goal haul would have been impressive enough, but the attacking midfielder somehow managed to score a trio of near-identical goals, and all of them in the first half to boot. Dibling drove at the heart of the Magpies’ defence before unleashing a left-footed shot into the bottom-right corner not once, not twice, but thrice.

  Highlights of his extraordinary exploits inevitably went viral, and that is probably the moment when attentiveness in him began to intensify, with Newcastle ironically the first club to express an interest in his services, according to The Athletic. The teenager was included in then-manager Ralph Hasenhuttl’s first-team squad for the clash with Brentford the following month, but he didn’t make it onto the pitch.

• How it’s going

  Despite returning to the club, Dibling would still have to bide his time for a first-team opportunity at St. Mary’s. Having signed his first professional contract in February 2023, it wasn’t until August that year that he would make his senior debut – coming on as a late substitute in a Carabao Cup clash against Gillingham.

  Though Southampton had been relegated to the Championship and he was regularly included in matchday squads in 2023-24, Dibling saw just two minutes of action in the second tier under Russell Martin as he continued to predominantly ply his trade in the Premier League 2, although he did see plenty of action in the FA Cup after the turn of the year.

  That has all changed this season, however; with the Saints back in the big time, Martin has integrated the youngster in his first-team setup from the off and is reaping the rewards. The 18-year-old has been involved in each of their seven games so far, notching three goal involvements in all competitions.

  He was handed his full Premier League debut against Manchester United recently from the right-wing, tormenting makeshift left-back Diogo Dalot throughout his 63 minutes on the pitch and winning what could have been a crucial penalty, but Cameron Archer’s effort was saved with the score goalless in an eventual 3-0 defeat.

  The following week, Dibling would cap his fine start to life in the first team with his first-ever senior goal; there was something poetic about the assist coming from veteran Southampton academy product Adam Lallana, who is twice Dibling’s age, as their latest graduate controlled his through ball expertly before sweeping a finish into the back of the Ipswich Town net.

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  Biggest strengths

  Dibling has already demonstrated at the highest level that his game is all about driving at his opponent and making things happen in the final third. The teenager’s ball-carrying ability is exceptional as he combines footwork with the power to burst past his marker, and he seems to have the end product to match from what we have seen so far.

  At 18, Dibling still has some growing to do, but he is already a physically imposing proposition for opposition defenders and will only get bigger and stronger in the coming years. He is versatile, too – equally comfortable as a No.10 where he is more than capable of picking a pass, or as a tricky winger.

  He is hard-working off the ball, too, but the attribute that seems to have caught his manager’s eye is the confidence and liberty with which he has played so far. Speaking after the recent clash with Nottingham Forest, Martin said: “Tyler was brilliant. He was our biggest attacking threat. He was on the pitch for 15 minutes and he’s 18. We need a bit more of that mentality, that freedom to go and create, but he’s a really special talent. We just have to take our time with him.”

  Martin added after Dibling’s goal in the draw with Ipswich: “He can do things that not many other players I’ve ever seen can do. I love working with him, I love watching him play. I’d pay a lot of money to watch him play football and fortunately I’m the guy that gets to work with him and try and develop him.”

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  Room for improvement

  There are no glaring flaws in Dibling’s game at this very early stage of his career, but as you might expect he remains a little raw as an 18-year-old – although there is all the potential there to iron out the kinks. He is also getting used to the rigours of the Premier League and the stamina required, with Martin believing he is not yet capable of playing 90 minutes

  After his experience at Chelsea, where he wanted to leave after just two months having failed to settle, there are likely to be question marks over his mentality and whether he can cut it if and when he joins a top-level club again. Of course, that is caveated by the fact that Dibling was still a child when he briefly left Southampton for Cobham, and that should not count against him as he continues to mature and develop in surroundings famed for producing some excellent players down the years.

  “We have to enjoy him, but also have to be really firm with him and demanding because there’s so much talent,” Martin said recently. “And we also have to stick with him when he has a few sticky moments because it’s never easy. It’s never a straight line to being the best or maximising your potential.”

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  The next… Emile Smith Rowe?

  With his extremely low socks and scintillating dribbling ability, Dibling has been widely compared to Manchester City star Jack Grealish in recent times, but when you see him in full flight he is arguably more similar in style to another low-socked dynamo, ex-Arsenal man Emile Smith-Rowe.

  The pair have an uncannily similar, bustling ball-carrying styles, and their ball-striking and passing technique are also alike – all notable in Dibling’s extraordinary hat-trick against Newcastle’s U23s in 2022. While Smith Rowe is right-footed and cuts in from the left, Dibling is left-footed and cuts in from the right.

  That’s not to say there aren’t parallels with Grealish, but City’s No.10 is more languid in his movements and has perhaps become less explosive as time has gone by.

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  What comes next?

  Dibling’s fine start to life in the Premier League has provoked predictable and loose links to Manchester United, seemingly based on the fact that ex-Newcastle sporting director Dan Ashworth – who was partly behind the Magpies’ interest in the player two years ago – has since joined the Old Trafford hierarchy.

  But Southampton are in a strong negotiating position, with Dibling under contract until 2026 with the option for a further 12 months, and they may well feel that the youngster’s experience at Chelsea will deter him from accepting a move to a bigger club too soon, with a new deal potentially in the works.

  “I think when you’re 18 and you’re playing in the Premier League at the level he has, then every club in the world probably looks at you,” Martin said after the Ipswich draw. “He’s ours. The club have turned down bids for him previously since I’ve been here. It’s not a secret to people who have watched U21s football.

  “He left the club and didn’t enjoy it where he went so he came back. The speculation is nothing for him or for me. We are in a strong position and I’m sure we will look at securing and strengthening that even more. If he carries on doing what he is doing then he will deserve that. He just needs to focus on football and concentrate on what he is doing.”

  Time will tell what happens, but for now Dibling will be determined to solidify this as his breakout season in the Premier League and kick on from there.