SAINTS attacker Mohamed Elyounoussi is closing in on a new “long-term” contract to keep him at Southampton for the foreseeable future. A hard-worker and capable of moving inside when Saints’ marauding full-backs fly up the wing, the Moroccan-born forward should continue to have a sizable role heading into the new season.
Ralph Hasenhuttl said: “I think this loan time definitely helped him to make the next step in his development. It was important for him to get game time there (at Celtic) – it was always a problem here in the beginning. It is always tough when you are coming into a new team, then the team is not performing well and you are a little bit under the radar and don’t get a chance to play a lot. So, I think he needed this time and we were always following him, looking how he developed his game and it was for me, in the summer, a very clear decision to say ‘I want him back in this team’. Immediately in the pre-season I saw he could give me a lot, what I want to have in this position. He is a smart player, he can score goals, he is running a lot, covers a lot of distance and is disciplined in the defence. He is a quick learner and he learned to be more resilient in the Premier League. This is what you have to be, because it’s tough – it is physically a tough league. When you learn to do this, then the package is a good one and I think meanwhile, he showed he is a good package.
Mohammed Elyounoussi said: I’ve always said I thrive in Southampton, it’s a fantastic club. The family thrives well. We’ll see what we land on.”
Set to turn 28 before the start of the 2022/23 season, a three/four year contract would keep Elyounoussi at the club past his 30th birthday.
