Turkish Club Interested In Saints Out Of Contract Midfielder
Tuesday, 25th Apr 2023 10:07

Southampton aren't down just yet, but the vultures are already starting to swarm, one approach that may please some of the Saints supporter base though is an approach from Turkish club Besiktas.

It is fair to say that Saints supporters are split about Mohammed Elyounoussi, some think that he is average and no worse than most of his other rivals for a place in the Southampton team, whilst others have made him their scapegoat and froth at the mouth before and after he plays for the side.

For me the answer is pretty much down the middle, he has contributed no more or less than any of the dozen or so players who vie for a place either wide in midfield or up front, those who deride him, cannot really name a player who has produced the goods and truly deserves to be a shoe in ahead of Elyounoussi and that is perhaps why we are where we are now.

I am certainly not going to make excuses for the Norwegian international, to be frank his five years at St Mary's have not exactly been covered in glory, when he joined in the summer of 2018 for £16 million there were high hopes for him, but it soon became apparent that he was struggling to adapt to the rigours of the Premier League.

After a poor first season at St Mary's he spent two season at Celtic in the Scottish Premier League where again he was reasonable at that level but not outstanding.

He returned to Saints last season and did ok and again this season he has played in most of the games in the Premier League, indeed the only outfield player to play more games is James Ward Prowse..

But it seems that he still has admirers on the continent as with his contract up at the end of the season, he is able to leave on a free transfer.

First to show their interest appear to be Turkish club Besiktas, media outlet Fotospor are reporting that

"Besiktas have ‘contacted’ the Southampton player, with the player’s agent being asked about what Elyounoussi’s demands would be should he be interested in moving to the SÃ¼per Lig."

The talks are said to have been ‘positive’, although the report does say that there was no direct talk of numbers when it comes to any potential contract.

Photo: Action Images via Reuters

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underweststand added 10:46 - Apr 25

He's a player who DAJFU but rarely puts in a stand-out performance, (but he's not alone with that comment in the current squad). We might have hoped he'd scored a bit more often, (given his goal tally with Celtic), but we should admit that he isn't afraid to come back and help out in defence when needed.
He is probably one of those who doesn't excel in the positions he's selected for and has suffered a bit from successive managers who aren't really sure what he's best played.
I wouldn't think we'd rush to renew his contract (as he's most likely one the last of those with" oversized salaries ") and that money would be best spent on new, younger talents.

If his future is in Turkey (?) he may well turn up alongside Nathan Redmond, (who shows a new lease of life in the Besiktas squad), and so I'd say good luck to Moi in a new club.

felly1 added 11:05 - Apr 25

Average player at best. Played in the wrong position. He's never a wide player for me as he has the pace of an arthritic donkey.
It's almost comical watching the defender amble back and catch him when he is in space.
Not a bad player when he's played centrally though tbf.
Hard working, can pass and gets in good positions.
Probably best he went as we need to upgrade if we want to improve.

BuenosSaint added 12:31 - Apr 25 I was wondering if he could dajfu in the championship at least. Similar question around Walcott. But probably better to get the high earners off the books if they haven't delivered their value to date. If they both took pay cuts if nobody wanted them.....
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TimSaint added 12:34 - Apr 25

I reckon he must be the best runner in training, as he is picked so regularly, but then he gets on the pitch, does some running, but that is it. He rarely shoots, never scores, doesn't track back and contributes virtually nothing, yet has been picked regularly by many different managers.

If Turkey wasn't so far away, I would expect the usual offers from fans to 'drive him there myself' !!

SaintPaulVW added 13:32 - Apr 25 He's not the quickest, his final balls are usually pretty bad but he is 100% committed. I can see why coaches pick him he's a solid unspectacular player. More of a squad player than a regular starter for me. Think he has had his chance with us. Hope he does well wherever he goes.
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