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Southampton In Transfer Talks With Sassuolo
Thursday, 30th Dec 2021 14:34

Saints are said to have opened talks with Italian Serie A side Sassuolo regarding midfielder Moi Elyounoussi, a little ironic after his recent goal and display against West Ham United.

Some Saints supporters will be surprised to learn that the club have report ably opened talks with Saints about Moi Elyounoussi moving to Italy in the January transfer window.

After a dire first season at St Mary's Elyounoussi spent two years on loan at Celtic and returned to the Saints squad this season and has started 10 of the 19 Premier league games plus another 4 appearances off the bench scoring twice.

But Ralph Hasenhuttl has a squad packed with wide midfield options and he knows that he has to sell to buy in the January window and Elyounoussi would be a big wage off the books and hopefully a decent fee for a player who has not delivered much during his time at the club.

According to Italian media outlet Tutto Mercato, the Serie A outfit are already in touch with Southampton to probe the situation and open talks for the Norwegian, although they don't reveal whether Saints have been open to talking about a deal or have rejected it out of hand.

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SaintPaulVW added 14:59 - Dec 30
He seems like a nice enough chap but after 3 years he hasn't really set the place on fire. We now have several options that deserve some game time, in particular Tella. Plus, as his final year approaches, his transfer value will be rapidly declining.

From a squad perspective, just like Gabbi a few years ago, if there's a deal to be had, it's probably worth taking it.
5

cocklebreath added 15:14 - Dec 30
Get rid
-2

underweststand added 15:30 - Dec 30
Every player has a price, and if you really want him - you pay that price.
Liverpool broke their records for .... a winger (Mane) and a CB (VvD) (both ex-Saints).
Clearly if a club were to make a significant bid for Mo - or anyone else - Saints seem open to discuss it, and the player can make his own decision on a move, (as the case maybe).
Clearly Mo has goals in him, as his time at Celtic proved, but impressive as he has been I don't consider him to be as " irreplaceable " as some others in the squad, and he can hardly be called " a key player " in the Saints set-up. Elyounoussi is the last of that expensive sextet signed by Messers. Wilson & Reed and who were gifted " very favourable " contract terms.
Even allowing for injuries and Covid, our squad is much stronger than in recent seasons, and Ralph has a few ( as yet untried) young talents in the B team who are just itching to get some first team football. Livramento and Broja has shown that even inexperienced teenagers can make a mark in the Prem. given the chance.

I'm sure Mo has a lot of football still in him, but our playing formation doesn't really give him the opportunities to show up well. If we get a interesting bid, and he can get regular playing time elsewhere (?) then a move away could be a win-win situation.
2

AmericanSaint added 16:44 - Dec 30
I think he has done well this year given his chances. I read that Sassoulo can only afford about $10 Million after the sale of their star player due to having to pay onward fees of 50%. I personally think 10 Million is too cheap for him and would keep him for that. If they offer 15M+ then I would agree we should sell given we have some gifted youngsters ready to go. The issue we have is if we sell, we dont have enough in the bank to use this money to get a quality keeper, which we really need.
2

Colburn added 17:42 - Dec 30
I think he's been a useful addition to the team this season, particularly with Stuey out the first half. He has two more league goals than Redmond, Walcott, Djenepo and every other midfielder put together (JWP) aside.
However, he is on over £3million a year with us and we have the likes of Smallbone and Watts coming through in that position and they both look like they have quality. Stuey is on his way back so he may not be first choice soon and his wages are too high to be a squad player. £10m would be a decent enough return considering how much his stock dropped after being shipped out on loan too. Mixed feelings really but it won't be a disaster either way.
6

highfield49 added 17:57 - Dec 30
I suspect that there won't be too many posts suggesting we give Moi the option of a new contract next summer. Without doubt he's an improved player, and has almost made a genuine impact during recent games, but still nowhere near indispensable. I believe that there were also rumours of interest from Leicester and Arsenal a few weeks back.
My view is that if he's inclined to move on I'd let him go, one of several signings in recent years that looked promising but failed to deliver the end product.
1

NewburySaint added 19:24 - Dec 30
I’d be surprised to see him go to Sassuolo, they’re not exactly a “rich” club & I would suggest they have nowhere near our meagre resources.

Maybe a smokescreen for another team being interested, or agent talk putting his name out there??
0

WestSussexSaint added 07:32 - Dec 31
He has done well enough this season but this looks like a pure financial decision for Saints rather than a footballing one given how long he has left on his current deal and his wages.
0

TeamCortese added 10:25 - Dec 31
We should do whatever it takes to use the funds generated from Mo to sign Broja on a permanent basis. Broja has his whole career ahead of him and needs at least a few seasons in the EPL before he joins a so-called big club. We also need a long-term goalkeeper replacement and extra competition LB. I'd personally like us to try Dean Henderson (from Man Utd) although I suspect he'll be waiting for Lloris at Spurs to leave in the summer.

For the LB position, I think KWP has done a good job but we need a natural LB going forward. Furthermore, Ralph should rotate KWP and Tino at RB as it's likely we won't be able to keep Tino for long anyway. We also have Valery too.

Hopefully, if we get new ownership with an actual long-term plan for the club that may be able to convince some of the proposed players to sign for at least a couple of years.
0

Block8 added 10:54 - Dec 31
Keep him and unload Djenepo & Wallcott or unload all three and promote Watts & Chauke!
1


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