Ralph Hasenhuttl could be set to offer Alexandre Jankewitz a fresh opportunity to turn over a new leaf in his Southampton career following Oriol Romeu’s injury against Leeds.
The Swiss youngster became something of a sinner for the Saints after a reckless challenge in just the second minute saw the youngster dismissed on his Premier League debut against Manchester United.
The dismissal, which came following a challenge on Scott McTominay, opened the floodgates for the Red Devils, who stormed to a soul-shattering 9-0 victory against the Saints.
Despite having just three minutes of Premier League experience so far, Jankewitz could be a contender to break back into the Southampton starting XI against Everton on Monday. Having since served his three-match ban, the 19-year-old made the bench in defeats against Chelsea and Leeds but played no role in either fixture.
When discussing the injury to Romeu, Hasenhuttl stated that it was “not looking good”, with the club set to assess his potential ankle problem over the coming days. The Spaniard was replaced by Mali international Moussa Djenepo against Leeds, but that was a tactical choice as much as a necessary one to bolster the Saints’ offensive prospects.
Speaking about his sparsity of midfield options, Hasenhuttl said [via Hampshire Live]:
We don’t have a lot of alternatives at the moment. Ibra (Diallo) is also injured and takes also time to come back, you see? This is exactly what happens at the moment.
We lose games. We lose players nearly every game with an injury. It was not even a yellow card, I mean, I don’t want to discuss the referee but we are very nice at the moment.
They can kick us. We get the yellow cards. They can hurt us and we are injured. This is the moment.
On Jankewitz, Hasenhuttl added: “He can definitely have better starts than he had in a Premier League game, definitely.”
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The Everton game could represent a moment of redemption for Jankewitz if he is restored to the Southampton line-up by Hasenhuttl. The Old Trafford sending-off was surely a humbling one, and the 19-year-old could be the natural choice to come back into the side.
Hasenhuttl dismissed that costly moment as a ‘silly mistake’, and the youngster subsequently cleared the air with his teammates.
Should he start on Monday, Jankewitz must take the chance with both hands if he is to undo the error of his ways from his last appearance.
