Ralph Hasenhuttl insists that Southampton are going to do everything they can to make sure that Moussa Djenepo becomes more stable and avoids picking up so many injuries following his latest setback.
The Malian looked disconsolate as he limped off the field against Liverpool on Monday after half an hour to be replaced by Nathan Tella. The 22-year-old was getting into his stride and was showing signs he could potentially help the Saints extend their 1-0 advantage, but that was halted by him pulling up with a hamstring problem.
The winger has endured multiple niggly injuries throughout his time at St Mary’s and also had a spell on the sidelines earlier this season with another hamstring injury. At the time, Hasenhuttl outlined the need for Southampton to get him into a position where he could have a long run in the team without any injury issues in order to take his game to the ‘next level.’
Speaking to the Daily Echo on Djenepo’s latest setback, Hasenhuttl insisted that the Saints must continue to work with him to try and prevent these muscle injuries from recurring in the future. He also commented on how frustrating the situation is for the 22-year-old with the constant injury setbacks, saying:
He showed in the first half that he is, with the ball and against the ball, absolutely a player that can play this 10 position.
He is developing his game. We are working hard with him and to be again out, this is horrible for him.
We must do everything so that he stays more stable and hopefully he can be with us soon.
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You can’t help but feel sorry for Djenepo over his inability to stay fit for a prolonged period of time. However, his repeated injury woes could become a major concern for the Saints, who have already been linked with a potential move for Demarai Gray. That would see them bring in a player who could challenge for his place in the side and, if the Malian struggles to stay fit, he could lose his starting role in the long-term.
The 22-year-old has undoubted ability and Hasenhuttl is fully behind the winger, who he has described as ‘fantastic’. The Austrian will be working hard with his fitness and coaching staff to try and get to the bottom of these recurring injuries, but they might eventually need to think about a potential replacement such as Gray if Djenepo just cannot be relied upon to stay fit.
The Saints are likely to miss the winger for the next few matches and that is a major blow given the other injury issues they have had in their squad of late. However, Hasenhuttl will have been impressed by Nathan Tella’s impact from the bench against Liverpool and that shows there is the strength in depth to cope with Djenepo’s absence.
