Southampton’s 1-0 midweek win away at Craven Cottage will do plenty of the Saints’ squad a world of good as Ralph Hasenhuttl opted to rotate a lot of his squad and give opportunities to those who are on the fringes of his Premier League squad.
One of those fringe men is one who is yet to start in the Premier League this season but showed exactly why that stat needs to change, as Sofiane Boufal made his long-awaited return to the starting eleven after making two substitute appearances in the league.
The Moroccan has surely proven now though that he deserves to be starting in the league. His two cameo displays against Burnley and Brighton were bright, with the latter of those far and away the more impressive as he bagged an assist in his 10 minutes of action in a 2-0 away win.
The next game that the Saints face is against Manchester United as Hasenhuttl and co. return to St. Mary’s after back-to-back away games in the league and Carabao Cup, and with Nathan Redmond a potential injury doubt, Boufal could be the wide attacker to step up.
The winger hasn’t started in the Premier League since February 2018 against West Brom, but now it could be time for him to return to the side after a loan spell at Celta Vigo in the 2018/19 season, and if he can grab a goal or assist on the way to three points it would be a huge success.
It’s yet to be seen if Boufal is going to play his way into his manager’s starting eleven, but with Southampton making a bright start to the season with the winger involved, you wouldn’t bet against him making a lasting impact and becoming a regular.
