What will USA international Damion Downs add to Southampton?

The striker is currently away with the US national team, playing under former Saints boss Mauricio Pochettino, and will face Mexico in the final Gold Cup final on Monday.

Downs has a chance to add another piece of silverware to his name having spearheaded Köln's promotion winning campaign in the 2. Bundesliga last season.

The German-bon forward was The Billy Goats' joint-top-scorer with 10 goals as they earned promotion to the Bundesliga by winning the second division.

Southampton will hope he can add a similar injection of goals as they bid to earn their own promotion from the second tier under Will Still this campaign.

Standing six-feet-three-inches tall, Downs signing for Saints is another indication of the recruitment strategy technical director Johannes Spors aims to implement.

🇺🇸🦅 #SaintsFC pic.twitter.com/cG4wOYfJCt

— Just Saints (@JustSaints_) June 14, 2025

Spors wants young, athletic players who can develop with the club as they aim to re-establish themselves as a Premier League outfit.

While still raw, owing to his lack of experience, Downs has many attributes which can be help him become a top striker if he develops correctly.

Working under Still, who has a track record of helping strikers push on, notably Downs' fellow US international Folarin Balogun, can help him do that.

Even though he stands nearly two meters tall, Downs is a willing runner in behind, meaning Saints have not simply signed a target forward.

Damion Downs races onto a ball over the top. (Image: Wyscout) Damion Downs fires a shot from a tight angle upon reaching the box. (Image: Wyscout).A key area where he has room for improvement is his ball control. Although also willing to drop deep to receive, he tends to play loose, first-touch passes.

This can improve with further exposure to senior football. His 90.32 per cent backwards pass completion rate is decent, but he will face tougher defenders in the Championship.

When running behind and through on goal, the ball can get stuck under his feet, denying him the chance to make the most of his pace.

Damion Downs has half of the pitch to run into, having just come on (Image: Wyscout) Damion Downs is caught before reaching the box. (Image: Wyscout) Damion Downs is forced to shoot from a tight angle while under pressure. (Image: Wyscout)/But this is where his determined nature aids his raw talents. A goal scored against 1. FC Magdeburg showcased this.

With space ahead of him, Downs' first touch let him down, inviting the defender to engage, but luck was on his side as the attempted tackle rebounded to a teammate.

Damion Downs has space to run into on the break against 1. FC Magdeburg. (Image: Wyscout) Damion Downs' first touch is loose, but the ball ricochets to a teammate on the wing. (Image: Wyscout) Rather than letting his head drop, Downs perfectly timed his run into the box, leaving him free to receive a cutback and poke home the opening goal.

Köln work the ball from right to left before cutting back to Damion Downs in space. (Image: Wyscout) Downs scored the bulk of his goals last season, seven of his 10 2. Bundesliga strikes, from positions between the sticks, indicate a strong positional sense.

Stats from Gemini Sports, an analytics company that rates player attributes out of 100, gave the striker a 50.9 rating for shot location.

There is room to grow there. For context, Ollie Watkins ranks at 87.2. It's Downs' shot placement score of 42.9 which is more impressive.

A scrappy goal scored against Bayer Leverkusen in the DFB Pokal serves as the greatest example of what he can do in the box when his sharp-shooter aim is in.

Closed down by two players in the box, he managed to fashion enough space to tuck the ball past Matěj Kovář in the 10th minute of first-half added time.

Damion Downs is closed down by Germany international Jonathan Tah. (Image: Wyscout) Damion Downs beats a tackle before immediately firing at goal. (Image: Wyscout)

His effort flies into the bottom corner, giving Köln an unlikely lead. (Image: Wyscout) In the second half, Köln doubled their lead through Linton Maina, and Downs was at the centre of that goal too, this time as the provider.

The Werneck-born forward got the ball inside Köln's own half before knocking the ball into the space behind him, taking the defender out of the game.

Damion Downs spins the defender with his first touch. (Image: Wyscout) ​After lifting his head to spot his teammate in space down the wing, Downs plays him through with a first-time pass, capping off a smooth bit of holdup play.

Damion Downs feeds his teammate down the right wing with a first-time pass. (Image: Wyscout) Maina still had a lot to do, and tucked the ball home brilliantly, but he would not have had the space he did had his teammate not taken the defenders out with his initial position.

Linton Maina remains composed to cut in and fire past the keeper. (Image: Wyscout) Linton Maina remains composed to cut in and fire past the keeper. (Image: Wyscout) Downs has not yet become a dominant player in the air. He managed just seven headed shots last season in a Köln side who made the third-most crosses per 90 minutes.

With Still's preference for crosses into the box, he can expect to receive more service at St Mary's, particularly from corners.

Thankfully, he has scored two late winners with his head; his 94th-minute winner against Greuther Fürth was his most dramatic last season.

Damion Downs shoves his marker out of the way at a corner. (Image: Wyscout) That created enough space for Damion Downs to head in the 94th-minute winner. (Image: Wyscout)

With Paul Onuachu already out of the door, Downs will be competing for the number nine shirt against Cameron Archer and Ross Stewart.

Those two will have a head start, as their new American teammate will likely receive holiday time having played at an international tournament over the summer.

But when he returns, he will be looking to catch the eye of Still and add a second consecutive promotion to his resume.