Southampton winger Mohamed Elyounoussi is reportedly Besiktas’ first-choice signing for their left-hand side, and the Saints should not stand in his way if he wishes to leave.
The Norway international was linked with a loan move to Turkey towards the end of last week, with his first-team prospects at St Mary’s Stadium appearing to be unlikely.
However, new claims from TRT Spor’s Firat Gunayer, via Twitter, suggest that Besiktas have firmed up their interest in Elyounoussi, making him their ‘number one goal’ to bolster Abdullah Avci’s left-sided options.
Twitter: 9) Beşiktaş’ın sol ön için 1 numaralı hedefi Southampton’dan Mohamed Elyounoussi’yi kiralamak..
Oyuncuyla anlaşıld… https://t.co/qdxGT43GWg (@firatgunayer)
Read Southampton’s verdict
Elyounoussi’s tenure at St Mary’s has been a disaster. He was mismanaged, to begin with, under Mark Hughes but failed to make an impression in his debut campaign, scoring no goals and chipping in with no assists.
Following a £16 million move from FC Basel last summer, expectations of the winger were high. However, he has shown little sign of progress in English football, leading Ralph Hasenhuttl to exclude him from his pre-season plans of late.
Elyounoussi has never truly had a sufficient run of games to bed himself into the Premier League, but it is difficult to argue that such a chance would be justified, as he has consistently underwhelmed.
The emergence of Josh Sims as a possible option under Hasenhuttl, coupled with the arrival of Moussa Djenepo from Standard Liege for £14 million earlier this summer, has only pushed the 25-year-old further down the pecking order at Southampton.
Also, a certain Sofiane Boufal has looked impressive in his two outings for Saints in pre-season, scoring against Feyenoord after coming off the bench and adding urgency, creativity and direct running to the performance against FC Koln, also in a cameo appearance.
With the likes of Nathan Redmond, Djenepo, Sims, Boufal, and perhaps even James Ward-Prowse on the right all ahead of Elyounoussi in the competition for places in the wide roles, him remaining at Southampton makes little sense.
While the club would likely prefer a permanent sale of the winger, a loan move seems most plausible. If Besiktas do indeed present a reasonable offer, and a switch to the Turkish Super Lig suits the player, it is a deal that should be sealed.
